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How a Commission thrives on
Punjab's woes
 Chandigarh: If
you think the Justice Liberhan Commission took a long time (17
years) to probe the demolition of the Babri Masjid, then consider
this: The Justice Eradi Commission, adjudicating on disputes between
Haryana and
Punjab
over river waters, is yet to submit its final report after 24 years,
a record.
The total cost
so far: more than Rs 7 crore. The government currently spends Rs 60
lakh per year on this commission. It has had to pay the salary and
expenses bills of the panel and its support staff even during the
eight years, from 1989 to 1996 (both years included), when the
three-member Ravi-Beas Waters Commission, headed by Justice V.
Balakrishna Eradi, did not hold a single hearing.
The same was the
case during the 1999-2003 period. "The (commission) is costing Rs 60
lakh a year (currently)," said Vijay Kumar, deputy director general
(Indus Wing) of the Union ministry of water resources.
According to the
ministry, there is no provision in law to empower the government "to
dissolve" the commission. Its staff comprises 24 members. Justice
Eradi, 88, draws a monthly emolument of Rs 1.29 lakh at present. His
monthly remuneration on his appointment was Rs 9,000 and other
benefits applicable to a serving Supreme Court Judge. The Centre
revised the remuneration and perks of Justice Eradi after the Fifth
and Sixth Pay Commission reports were submitted in 1997 and 2008,
respectively.
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* The government
currently spends Rs 60 lakh per year on this commission.
* Justice V.
Balakrishna Eradi is 88-year-old and draws a monthly emolument of Rs
1.29 lakh.
* After nearly
25 years and 83 sittings, the panel is nowhere near a verdict.
* Lakhs were
paid in salary and bills during the eight years from 1989 to 1996
when the three-member Ravi-Beas Waters Commission did not hold a
single hearing.
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At present,
Justice Eradi gets Rs 90,000 as basic pay, Rs 24,300 as dearness
allowance and Rs 15,000 as sumptuary allowance. Eradi was a Supreme
Court judge when the panel was set up in 1986 by the Centre
following the
Punjab
accord signed by the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Akali
leader Harchand Singh Longowal in 1985.
Eradi retired
from the Supreme Court in 1987 and continues as chairperson of the
commission to date. After nearly 25 years and 83 sittings, the panel
is nowhere near a verdict on the Ravi-Beas water-sharing tussle
between the two states. In 1986, the panel held 53 hearings. But in
the subsequent 22 years until the end of 2008, the commission held
30 hearings.
The three-member
panel submitted an interim report on January 30, 1987, mentioning
that the Sutlej-Yamuna link (SYL) canal was the lifeline of the
farmers of Haryana and unless it was completed, Haryana would not be
in a position to utilise its full amount of water allocated to it.
Punjab contested
the interim award in 1987 at the Supreme Court. After this, the
Centre, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan made a reference to the
commission in August 1987, seeking guidance on certain points in the
report.
Subsequently,
the period for submitting the final report by the commission was
extended to February 5, 2008. The number of annual hearings by the
commission has come down because of a presidential reference on July
22, 2004, before the apex court to examine whether Punjab's
termination in the early part of the same year of all agreements
related to the Ravi-Beas waters was valid.
The panel is
awaiting the outcome of the presidential reference.
The composition
of the commission has changed over the years. A member of the
commission resigned in March 1989 after he was elevated as a Supreme
Court judge. The vacant post was filled in November 1996. In January
1999, U.C. Banerjee, a member of the commission, left after he
became a Supreme Court judge. This vacant post was filled in 2003,
after which the hearings resumed again.
In 1986-87, when
it held the highest number of hearings, the annual expenditure of
the commission was Rs 23 lakh.
3
February 2010
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