CWP No.9069 of 2007 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH CWP No.9069 of 2007 Date of Decision: 8.2.2010 Jaswant Singh and others .... Petitioners vs. Superintending Canal Office and others .... Respondents Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Rajive Bhalla. .... Present: Mr. C.M. Munjal, Advocate for the petitioners. Mr. S.S. Sahu, AAG, Punjab for respondent Nos.1 to 3. Mr. B.S. Sidhu, Advocate for respondents no.6 and 7. **** Rajive Bhalla, J (Oral) The petitioners pray for issuance of a writ in the nature of certiorari for quashing orders dated 17.8.2005 and 15.11.2006, allocating 79/75 acres of land belonging to private respondents to outlet No.5500/R Kameana Minor of Harike Division. Counsel for the petitioners submits that he has no objection to the allocation of the private respondents land to outlet No.5500/R Kameana Minor, provided irrigation to their land is not adversely affected in any manner. Counsel for the private respondents submits that as the petitioners have accepted their request for transfer of 79/75 acres of land to outlet No.5500/R Kasmeana Minor, they have no objection, if the orders CWP No.9069 of 2007 2 passed by respondent nos.1 and 2 are set aside and the matter is remitted to the canal authorities to decide the matter afresh. Counsel for the State of Punjab submits that as the orders have been implemented, they cannot be varied any further. I have heard counsel for the parties and perused the impugned orders. Water for irrigation, is more often than not the genesis of numerous civil and criminal disputes, particularly in agrarian States like Punjab and Haryana. Though allocation of land to or withdrawal of land from an outlet is best left to the technical competence and discretion of officers exercising powers under the Northern India Canal and Drainage Act, 1873 (hereinafter referred to as `the Act') but this power cannot be exercised arbitrarily or by disregarding the rights of all concerned. A proposal to allocate additional land to an outlet would necessarily raise an apprehension, in the mind of an existing right holder, that his entitlement to water would be adversely affected. This apprehension must be addressed fairly by officers exercising powers under the Act. The officers should exercise greater degree of care and caution and desist from using vague expressions like “interest of irrigation”, “increase of yield” and “in the better interest of irrigation” while determining rights of parties. Before proceeding to pass an order allocating additional land to an outlet, canal officers are required to assess the yield of the outlet, the commanded area, the area to be added, the availability of water etc. and only thereafter record a statistical finding, whether rights of landowners drawing water from the outlet would or would not be adversely affected. The orders passed by officers under the Act should disclose a rational basis for CWP No.9069 of 2007 3 allowing or disallowing a request for allocation of land, change of wari etc. The impugned orders do not set out any reasons for allocating additional land to the petitioners outlet much less address their well founded apprehension that their entitlement to water would be adversely affected by allocation of additional land. In view of what has been stated herein above, the writ petition is allowed, orders dated 17.8.2005 and 15.11.2006 are set aside and the matter is remitted to the Superintending Canal officer, Ferozepur Canal Circle, Ferozepur and Superintending Canal Officer, Ludhiana Canal Circle, Ludhiana, to decide the appeal afresh and in accordance with law, after taking into consideration the rights of all the parties concerned and particularly the fact that when an area is added to an outlet, every attempt should be made to ensure that the existing land owners are not adversely effected. During the pendency of the appeal, the existing arrangement shall continue. The appeal shall be decided within a period of three months from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order. Parties are directed to appear before the Superintending Canal Officer, Ferozepur Canal Circle, Ferozepur and the Superintending Canal Officer, Ludhiana Canal Circle, Ludhiana, on 8.3.2010. 8.2.2010 ( RAJIVE BHALLA ) manju/GS JUDGE