Terming India’s move to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty after the Pahalgam terror attack as a form of “water warfare”, Pakistan has pledged to contest the action legally, asserting that India cannot independently withdraw from a treaty that includes international bodies such as the World Bank.
“India’s reckless suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty is an act of water warfare; a cowardly, illegal move. Every drop is ours by right, and we will defend it with full force – legally, politically, and globally,” Pakistan’s energy minister Awais Leghari tweeted.
The minister’s response occurred as Pakistan’s primary security body, the National Security Committee (NSC), conducted a meeting to evaluate India’s series of actions against the nation following the terror strike in the tourist destination of Pahalgam that resulted in 26 deaths.
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The Indus Waters Treaty
The Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), which has withstood four wars, years of cross-border terrorism from Pakistan towards India, and a lengthy history of hostility between the nations, was put on hold by New Delhi for the first time on Wednesday.
The IWT was signed in Karachi on September 19, 1960, after nine years of discussions between India and Pakistan. The Treaty contains 12 Articles and 8 Annexes (designated A through H).
As per the terms of the Treaty, all water from the Indus system’s “Eastern Rivers” — Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi — will be accessible for the “unlimited use” of India. Pakistan will obtain water from the “Western Rivers” — Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab.
Implications of Suspension of IWT
The choice to halt the IWT will immediately provide New Delhi with additional ways to utilize the waters of the Indus river system.
“For example, India could promptly cease providing water flow information to Pakistan. India will face no design or operational limitations regarding the utilization of water from the Indus and its tributaries. India can now develop storage on the Western Rivers: Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab,” P K Saxena, the former Indian Commissioner for Indus Waters, informed The Indian Express.
Saxena mentioned that India can prevent visits from Pakistani officials to the two ongoing hydroelectric projects in Jammu & Kashmir — the Kishenganga HEP on the Kishenganga, a Jhelum tributary, and the Ratle HEP on the Chenab.
However, the halt will not affect the water supply to Pakistan for several years at minimum. India presently lacks the infrastructure to halt the water flow into Pakistan or to redirect it for its own purposes.
