Title - Pursue Presidential reference: Bishnoi

New Delhi: HJC president Kuldeep Bishnoi today said there was a need to pursue the Presidential reference made on the constitutional validity of the Punjab Termination of Agreement Act, 2004.The Act passed by the Punjab Assembly stalled the completion of the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal despite a Supreme Court order on the matter. Bishnoi, an MP from Hisar, today reminded the Lok Sabha that Punjab annulled the water sharing agreement in July 2004. Due to this Act, the two judgments of the SC dated January 15, 2002, and June 4, 2004, could not be implemented. “Due to delay in completion of the SYL canal, the agricultural fields of Haryana are facing acute shortage of water for irrigation purpose resulting in heavy losses in agricultural crops.I request the government to take up the matter suitably so that it could come up for a detailed hearing at the earliest,” he added.Shruti Chaudhary, another MP from Haryana, raised the matter of providing funds for acquisition of land for laying of a railway line between Bhiwani and Loharu in Haryana and to augment rail facilities in Bhiwani and Mahendragarh districts of the state.A survey for the Bhiwani-Loharu railway line had been conducted, now funds may be sanctioned for the land acquisition for this line and construction of stations enroute, she said, adding that it would reduce the travelling distance between Haryana and Rajasthan.