Indus Waters Treaty | History of conflicts surrounding water-sharing agreement between India, Pakistan

(Representative image: AP)

India has issued notice to Pakistan in which New Delhi intends to modify the treaty which was signed in 1960. The treaty is considered one of the most successful water-sharing agreements in the world.

People in the know of the development were quoted by news agency ANI as saying: “Pakistan’s actions have adversely impinged on the provisions of IWT and their implementation and forced India to issue an appropriate notice for modification of IWT.”

“Despite repeated efforts by India to find a mutually agreeable way forward, Pakistan refused to discuss the issue during the five meetings of the Permanent Indus Commission from 2017 to 2022.”

To understand the crux of the issue at present, one must look into the history of the treaty first.

The Indus Waters Treaty was signed on September 19, 1960, between India and Pakistan after the World Bank brokered the deal for over nine years. The treaty delimited the rights of both nations with regard to the use of the waters of the Indus River and its tributaries, namely, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej.

The treaty gave India control over the waters of Beas, Ravi, and Sutlej, and Pakistan control over Indus, Chenab, and Jhelum. This gave India 20 percent of the total share of the water of the Indus River system and Pakistan 80 percent.

However, India was permitted to use the waters of the western river for limited irrigation and unlimited “non-consumptive use”, such as navigation, power generation, pisciculture, and the likes.

Fissures in the agreement became apparent in 2015 when Pakistan demanded a neutral expert come and examine the objections it raised to India’s hydropower projects -- Kishenganga Dam and the Ratle Hydro Electric Plant. Later, Pakistan sought a Court of Arbitration to adjudicate it.

The current contention of New Delhi is that despite repeated efforts to find a mutually agreeable solution, Islamabad has refused to participate in discussions during the five meetings of the Permanent Indus Commission held between 2017 and 2022.

Now, India is seeking modifications in the IWT to make it easier for Pakistan to enter into intergovernmental negotiations within 90 days. Accordingly, a fresh notice was issued on January 25 through the respective Commissioners for Indus Waters as per Article XII (3) of the treaty.

“The objective of the notice for modification is to provide Pakistan an opportunity to enter into intergovernmental negotiations within 90 days to rectify the material breach of IWT. This process would also update IWT to incorporate the lessons learned over the last 62 years,” persons privy to the development said.

A similar dispute between India and Pakistan over the building of the Baglihar dam was earlier resolved by invoking the process of conflict resolution. However, it seems as though both Pakistan and India now want the Indus Waters Treaty to be reviewed and have raised questions over the many loopholes and lack of in-depth resolutions in it.

Also, in the aftermath of the Uri attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that “blood and water can’t flow together” and set up a task force to evaluate the Indus Waters Treaty. Threats to cut Pakistan’s water supply by stopping the flow of the rivers were also issued after the Pulwama attack by union minister Nitin Gadkari.

Since 2019, several projects on the Ravi, Jhelum, and Chenab have been fast-tracked, with the Government infusing crores of rupees to turn the Jammu and Kashmir region into an energy exporter by leveraging hydropower.