The Central Water Commission (CWC) has avoided to give its explicit opinion on the legality of the controversial Hansi-Butana feeder channel being built by Haryana to the Supreme Court or whether it will flood certain areas of Punjab but said adequate flood disposal mechanism has been planned in the project. The opinion of the CWC was placed before a Bench, headed by Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan yesterday after the apex court has referred the matter to the panel for its opinion last year as it is a statutory body set up under the law to regulate all inter-state water projects. The Bench after examining the report of the CWC directed the contesting states - Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan - to submit their responses to it to enable the court to give its final verdict. The CWC had examined the entire matter mainly on four points arisen from the suits of Punjab and Rajasthan against Haryana, challenging the construction of the Hansi-Butana channel by it for carrying water from Bhakra Main Line (BML) canal to southern parts of the state for irrigation. The four questions included whether the walls of the channel will result in flooding of border villages of Punjab during monsoon, whether drawing water from the BML by Haryana will reduce supply Rajasthan, will Haryana draw more than its allocated share and the possible water logging due to the channel itself. On the question whether Punjab's border areas would be waterlogged due to excess irrigation the CWC said, "No opinion is considered necessary'. Again on the question whether the lift irrigation command area in Haryana for which MPLC is meant to provide some relief has suffered immense water stress due to storage made by Rajasthan at Krishnawati, Sabibi and Dohan rivers and whether the CWC in its earlier report of September, 2007, had shown Hansi Branch, Jui system and Sewani system as a part of Indus Basin, the commission reiterated that "no opinion is considered necessary'. But the commission said the feeder channel envisaged diversion of 0.80 MAF out of Haryana's existing average annual utilisation of 1.62 MAF of Ravi-Beas waters from the BML to Hansi and Butana branch and all technical issues raised by the three states has been examined by it. "As regards concerns about flooding or sheet-flow of water, the CWC is of the view that there will be safe disposal of flood water into Ghaggar and Patiala Nadi as siphons of adequate capacity have been planned,' the panel said. Regarding drawing of water from the BML by Haryana and its affect on the flow downstream to Rajasthan, the CWC fixed the responsibility on Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) to ensure delivery to Punjab and Rajasthan's due share on priority. "Haryana would utilise its share after meeting the requirement of Punjab and Rajasthan on pro-rata basis as per actual supplies received,' the CWC said adding that Haryana has furnished an "undertaking' on October 10, 2007 the delivery of their shares under the supervision of BBMB. The CWC opined that the regulation in the undertaking given by Haryana should be entrusted to the BBMB as a neutral agency set up to regulate the water supply among the shareholder states.