Hansi-Bhutana Canal Project: A Political Misstep Leading to Irreversible Losses

Gustakhi Maaf Haryana-Pawan Kumar Bansal.

Eminent researcher and political analyst Dr. Ranbir Singh Phaugat highlights that the origins of the Hansi-Bhutana Canal project remain unknown to many. Bhupinder Singh Hooda, then Chief Minister, allegedly used the canal project as a political maneuver, but the Congress’s failure to deliver on its promise soon backfired. Subsequent feasibility studies revealed that constructing a north-to-southeast flowing canal on this terrain was geologically unsound.

The cost of social and political energy expended through controversies, protests, incomplete construction, environmental damage, changes in topography, compensation for land acquisition, wasted materials, and public harassment has yet to be calculated. Tragically, Haryana’s government agencies have failed to assess the social, technical, financial, and environmental losses inflicted by the abandoned canal project.

Dr. Phaugat notes that the political intentions behind this failed project were questionable, leading to over three decades of hardship for the affected people. The Hansi-Bhutana Canal stands as a reminder of the disruption caused by impractical political decisions.