Chandigarh, January 17
The Punjab Government, according to informed sources, has decided to shift almost entire staff that has been posted on the SYL canal project to other wings of the Irrigation Department in the state.
Only a small number of employees would be retained at the project to handle legal cases pending in various courts.
The canal issue is once again in the limelight for various reasons. Virtually a tug of war is going on between Punjab and Haryana on the issue. Haryana is insisting on the completion of the canal in the light of the Supreme Court judgement, but Punjab has taken the stand that it has no water for the canal. Punjab has moved the Supreme Court with a request that it should be discharged from the responsibility of constructing the canal. It should also be decided whether the Haryana was a riparian state to the Ravi-Beas system or not.
About 1700 employees are posted on the project. Of these, 1000 are clerks, engineers etc and 700 are work- charged staff. Sources said that the Finance Department had instructed the Irrigation Department that the entire staff posted on the project were doing nothing for the past 10 years and getting salary without performing any duty. They should be put on job elsewhere.
In fact, the staff posted on the canal project have become virtually a liability for the Punjab Government. It has to bear the entire establishment cost of the staff since 1990, when the work on the project was virtually stopped.
Sources said that the Punjab would sent a number of project employees to the Bhakra Beas Management Board.
