Chandigarh, Mar 9 (PTI) Haryana Agriculture Minister J P Dalal said in the Assembly here on Tuesday that there is no shortage of water for irrigation purposes in the state, a claim contested by the opposition who accused the government of unequal distribution of it.

Tosham Congress MLA Kiran Choudhary had moved a calling attention motion, claiming that Bhiwani district is getting 50 per cent less water against its requirement “and that too is not being distributed properly”.

She said due to water shortage, crops over vast areas cannot be properly irrigated.

Replying to it, the minister said his government has ensured equitable distribution of water in the state and 20-25 canals received water after a gap of nearly two decades.

During his reply, Dalal said water is being provided to all districts on an equitable basis as per approved rotational programme.

“We have ensured that there is no shortage of water for irrigation in any area and farmers do not face any problem,” Dalal claimed.

Choudhary also questioned the government why it is not taking steps to ensure that Haryana gets its rightful share of SYL waters.

Dalal reminded Choudhary that when she was a minister for two terms during the previous Congress regime, Bhiwani district did not get its due share of water.

“You chose to remain silent then because being in power was more important for you,” Dalal alleged.

The Congress leader hit back, alleging that the minister is making misleading claims.

Former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda also intervened and challenged Dalal to accompany him to any village in Bhiwani which says they did not get water during the previous Congress regime.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)