UP-Haryana Land Dispute | P&H HC Directs Surveyor General Of India To Study Changing Pattern Of Yamuna & Impact On Both States

The Punjab &  Haryana High Court directed the Surveyor General of India to examine the changing patterns of Yamuna with the help of revenue agency of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh (UP) in order to study its impact on territories of both the states  to resolve land dispute.

The Court also directed to erect a bounday pillars between the state after updating the records.

Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Vikas Suri said, “Directions are passed to the Surveyor General of India, to with the help of both the revenue agencies in the State of Haryana and in the State of Uttar Pradesh, thus undertake the exercise of studying the pattern of changes in the course of river Yamuna and the consequential effects thereof, on the territories respectively falling in the State of Haryana and falling in the State of Uttar Pradesh.”

The case pertains to landowners possessing 300 bighas in Haryana's Manjhawali village who were seeking correction of the revenue records concerning the land's ownership and cultivation status.

The land was stated to be located near Yamuna river banks and came under the jurisdiction of Uttar Pradesh after the river over the years changed its course. 

However, the Uttar Pradesh revenue records were transferred to Haryana in 1984 as part of a settlement under the Dixit Award. But the state's revenue officials failed to update the records.

The Court opined that at this stage stage, it cannot be conclusively stated there was never any change in the course of river Yamuna, since the last century, nor it can be said that on account of such changes in the courses of river Yamuna, there never occurred any alluvion or diluvion deposits alongside the banks of river Yamuna, and, such deposits ultimately settling onto the villages now existing in Haryana, which abut or adjoin the revenue estates which now occur in Uttar Pradesh and which earlier were officialy or un- officialy may be known as Chak Manjhawali in Uttar Prades

Records In Urdu-Persian Needs To Be Translated 

The Court also highlighted that, “the records in the said regard, if any, are in Urdu or in Persian, thus they are required to be initially translated and subsequently, upon the said facts, if becomes spoken thereins, thereupon, all the consequential effects thereof, are required to be employed vis-a-vis all the revenue estates occurring respectively in the State of Uttar Pradesh and in the State of Haryana.”

The bench also acknowledged that it is an “enormous exercise” but still for settling the rights of the estate holders concerned, whose rights, over the disputed lands, thus were or/are as riparian owners thereovers, and, when therebys the revenue records are required to be updated but only after the apposite measurements are done, it added.

Mr.D.P.Singh,  Mr. Shreenath A. Khemka, Advocates for the petitioners.

Mr. Ankur Mittal, Addl. A.G., Haryana. Ms. Sraleen Jaswan, Addl. A.G., Haryana. Mr. P.P.Chahar, Sr. DAG, Haryana.

Mr. Saurabh Mago, DAG, Haryana.

Mr. Gaurav Bansal, DAG, Haryana.

Mr. Karan Jindal, Asstt. A.G., Haryana.

Mr. Satya Pal Jain, Addl. Solicitor General of India with Mr. Dheeraj Jain, Senior Panel Counsel for UOI.

Mr. Sudhir Aggarwal, Advocate and Mr. Ishan Aggarwal, Advocate for the State of Uttar Pradesh.

Mr. Vikram Singh, Advocate for respondents No. 11, 16, 24 to 26 and 50.

Title: ISHWAR SINGH AND OTHERS. v. STATE OF HARYANA AND OTHERS

Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (PH) 83

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