Subhashis Mittra
The meeting to review the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan could not have taken place at a more appropriate time. It was held amidst heightened tension between the two countries.
The review of the treaty was done at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a time when India weighed options to give a befitting response to Pakistan in the wake of the Uri attack that left 18 soldiers dead.
There have been consistent calls in India that the Government scrap the water distribution pact to mount pressure on Pakistan in the aftermath of the terror attack.
Once seen by India as a gesture of peace, the IWT is now at the centre of escalating tension between the two countries.
The treaty — a water sharing arrangement — was signed in Karachi on 19 September 1960 by then Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and then
Pakistan President General Ayub Khan. It was believed to be an incredibly generous gesture by an upper riparian state for a lower riparian one.
Nehru had then told Parliament that India had, in fact, “purchased peace with the treaty”.
But, 56 years later, it is a different scenario all together.
“Blood and water cannot flow together,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while chairing the IWT review meeting.
It was decided that India will “exploit to the maximum” the water of Pakistan-controlled rivers, including Jhelum, as per the water sharing pact. The meeting also decided to set up a interministerial task forces to go into the details and working of the Treaty with a “sense of urgency”.
It also noted that the meeting of Indus Water Commission can “only take place in atmosphere free of terror”.
“Prime Minister’s Modi’s message at the meeting was that ‘rakt aur paani ek saath nahin beh sakta’ (blood and water cannot flow together).”
Apart from deciding to exploit to the maximum the capacity of three of the rivers that are under Pakistan’s control – Indus, Chenab and Jhelum– in the areas of hydro-power, irrigation and storage, the meeting agreed to review the “unilateral suspension” of 1987 Tulbul navigation project. The project was suspended in 2007.
The mood at the meeting, according to sources, was if Pakistan continues to support cross-border terrorism and does not respond to India’s concerns, the Government can take “more steps”.
“More steps”, according to experts, could mean “review” of the suspension of construction on the Tulbul navigation project which will give India “a geo-strategic edge” on the protracted water- treaty issue with neighbour Pakistan.
The meeting took a “conscious decision” to review the 1987 decision when, following objections from Pakistan, the construction works were suspended by the then Rajiv Gandhi-led Congress Government.
India started the work around 1984 on the river Jhelum but after Pakistan threatened to move the International Arbitral Court in 1986, the Indian Government decided to suspend the work in 1987.
India had taken up major construction works to control water flow but Pakistan had expressed fears in 1985-86 that improving navigation in the lake would be to India’s advantage due to geographical factors and India’s location.
While India claims the barrage would make the river navigable, Pakistan said “controlled flow of water to the Jhelum” can harm parts of Pakistan.
The decision to maximise the water resources for irrigation will address the “pre-existing” sentiment of people of Jammu and Kashmir, who have complained in the past about the treaty not being fair to them.
The meeting came as India weighed its options to hit back at Pakistan in the aftermath of the Uri attack that left 18 soldiers dead, triggering demands that the Government scrap the water distribution pact to mount pressure on that country.
Under the treaty, water of six rivers – three eastern rivers Beas, Ravi, Sutlej, and three western rivers Indus, Chenab and Jhelum – were to be shared between the two countries.
With a minor exception, the treaty gives India exclusive use of all the waters of eastern rivers and their tributaries, before these waters enter Pakistan.
But, Pakistan has been complaining about not receiving enough water and gone for international arbitration in a couple of cases.
Similarly Pakistan has exclusive use of western rivers and it has also received one-time financial compensation for the loss of water from the eastern rivers.
The waters of Indus basin begin in the Himalayan Mountains of Jammu and Kashmir and flow from the hills through the arid and dry states of Punjab and Sind, converging in Pakistan, before falling in Arabian Sea, south of Karachi.
The partition of the Indian sub-continent created a conflict over the waters of Indus basin.
The newly formed two dominions were at odds, over how to share and manage, what was essentially a cohesive and unitary network of irrigation.
The geography was such that the Source Rivers of Indus River were in Indian controlled area of J&K. Some water was also coming from China as well. Pakistan felt its livelihood threatened by the prospect of Indian control over the tributaries that fed water into the Pakistan portion of the basin.
During the first years of partition, the water of the Indus was meant to meet the immediate requirements and was to follow by negotiations for a more permanent solution. Pakistan always wanted that the water be allowed to run its own course without being hindered.
India however wanted otherwise. The negotiations between the two countries, however, reached a stalemate, as no side was willing to compromise their respective positions. Pakistan wanted to take the matter to the International court of Justice but India did not agree, stating that the conflict should be settled amicably.
By 1951, the two sides were no longer meeting and the situation seemed intractable. There was total deadlock and an atmosphere of hostility was visible.
Against this backdrop, the treaty was drafted and signed in 1960 to ensure “mutual trust and cooperation” for such an agreement to work.
The treaty is the longest agreement that has been upheld and implemented by both countries with sincerity. The agreement set up a commission to adjudicate any future dispute over the allocation of water.
The Commission has held 112 meetings so far and also survived two wars.
The Commission is required to meet regularly to discuss potential disputes and provides a mechanism for consultation and conflict resolution through inspection, exchange of data and visits.
There is a provision for mediation and arbitration, by a neutral umpire in case of any disagreement.
The Indus Water Treaty has so far been implemented by both the countries faithfully. It has not gone for any modification till date.
But, it is “for the first time” that the Government has taken “such a tough stand and suspended talks” between India and Pakistan with regard to the Indus Water Treaty, which has survived several hostilities and wars involving the two countries in the past.
“This for the first time such tough stand has been taken regarding the treaty…we won’t meet until things improve. We cannot meet in an atmosphere of terror. The idea is why should we engage in any discussion when they don’t respect any international understanding between us? They keep violating those, trouble us and we sit with them and look into the concerns,” said a senior official of the Water Resources Ministry.
Reacting to India’s decision to revisit its Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan, Islamabad said New Delhi has no right to unilaterally separate itself from the 56-year-old agreement between the two countries.
“According to the international law, India cannot unilaterally separate itself from the treaty.
If India violates the treaty, Pakistan can approach the International Court of Justice,” Pakistan Prime Minister’s Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz told the Pakistani media.
Aziz said the Indus Waters Treaty was not suspended “even during the Kargil and the Siachen wars” between India and Pakistan.
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