As the national Capital is heading for a hotter summer in May, the Delhi-Haryana-Punjab water sharing dispute has escalated as Delhi minister Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini accused Punjab of deliberately blocking water for political motives.

Verma has accused the Punjab Government of intentionally disrupting water supply to both Delhi and Haryana, calling it a politically motivated move aimed at creating a crisis in the national Capital. Verma in a post on X accused the AAP-ruled Punjab Government of indulging in “dirty politics” by allegedly stopping Yamuna water to Haryana and Delhi. He said any disruption in the supply from Bhakra Dam could lead to a severe water crisis during the peak summer season in Delhi.

Hitting back, Delhi AAP president Saurabh Bharadwaj accused the BJP of lying on the issue and said, “Central Government has stopped the flow of Indus river water to Pakistan-clearly, India has no shortage. If even one per cent of that water is allocated to Delhi, the city’s water crisis can be resolved instantly.” He claimed that the Punjab Government has not stopped water for Delhi or Haryana rather the BJP is resorting to “hooliganism” to snatch away Punjab’s rightful share of water. Amid escalating tension between Punjab and Haryana over a water sharing dispute, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said his Government will not allow the release of any more water to the neighbouring State, claiming it has already utilised its share. Mann had accused the BJP of exerting pressure on the Punjab Government through the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) to meet Haryana’s demands and stated that the neighbouring State had already exhausted its water share by March.

In his post, Verma said the Punjab Government has resorted to dirty politics by stopping the water supply to Haryana and Delhi. “After losing in Delhi, now they want to create water crisis in Delhi,” he said. However, Delhi Jal Board ( DJB) officials said that as of Thursday water supply is maintained at normal. “We are working day and night to provide clean water to every household in Delhi and now the Punjab Government wants to take revenge on the people of Delhi in this way. Stop this dirty politics or else you will be expelled from Punjab as well. Now, at the peak of summer, when water is needed the most, the Punjab Government is deliberately trying to deprive Delhi of its rightful share. This is not only insensitive but also a dangerous display of political malice,” Verma said.

The remarks come as Delhi battles soaring temperatures and rising water demand, with reports indicating a reduced flow of water to the city.

Delhi receives around 270 million gallons of water from the Bhakra Nangal dam daily, the lack of which could likely affect around 50 lakh people. Delhi’s total water supply is 936 MGD (Million Gallons per Day) sourced from Bhakra, Yamuna, Ganga, and the Carrier Lined Channel (CLC).

Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has assured that her Government will not let a water crisis impact Delhi.The prospect of a water crisis is particularly worrisome for Delhi, with the India Meteorological Department predicting higher than normal heat wave days for most of northern India through the month of May.

According to DJB officials, some raw water in Haryana gets through the Narwana canal from Bhakra Nangal dam which regulates water supply to Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi. “Some of this water is further transferred to Munak canal which originates from Haryana and ends in Haiderpur, Delhi. As of now, the raw water supply is maintained at normal,” a DJB official said.

The row erupted after Punjab allegedly capped the Bhakra water supply to Haryana at 4,000 cusecs. BBMB’s Technical Committee on April 23 decided to release Bhakra dam water to Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan. This started a water war as Mann said Haryana had utilised its share of water in March and was now seeking additional water for April and May. He had said Punjab needs water for the upcoming paddy sowing season and there was not a single surplus drop to spare. He had said as a humanitarian gesture, the Punjab Government generously allotted 4,000 cusecs of water daily to Haryana from April 6.

Earlier Saini said that he informed Mann on April 26, about the reluctance of Punjab officials to implement the decision taken by Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB)’s Technical Committee to release water to Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan. Saini citing his letter to Mann said that instead of responding to it the Punjab chief minister released a video and tried to mislead people by disregarding the facts. In the past, the AAP Government in Delhi had accused Haryana of stopping the Yamuna water supply. Every year during the summer season the water demand in the city increases. The BBMB regulates water distribution from Bhakra, Pong and Ranjit Sagar dams. Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan are the partnering States that meet their requirement for different purposes, including irrigation, from Bhakra and Pong dams. The BBMB decides the annual quota of water supply to the three States for a cycle from May 21 to May 21 every year.