Indus Waters Treaty

 Indus Water Treaty

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The Indus Waters Treaty was signed on September 19, 1960, between India and Pakistan and was mediated by the World Bank. The treaty established and defined both countries' rights and obligations in relation to the use of the Indus River system's waters.

The Indus River originates in China's southwestern Tibet Autonomous Region and flows through the disputed Kashmir region before entering Pakistan and draining into the Arabian Sea. Numerous tributaries, most notably those of the eastern Punjab Plain—the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej rivers—join it. Since time immemorial, the Indus River system has been used for irrigation.Around 1850, modern irrigation engineering work began. Large canal systems were built during British rule in India, and old canal systems and inundation channels were revived and modernized. However, British India was partitioned in 1947, resulting in the establishment of an independent India and West Pakistan (later called Pakistan).As a result, the water system was divided, with the headworks in India and the canals running through Pakistan. On April 1, 1948, after the short-term Standstill Agreement of 1947 expired, India began withholding water from canals that flowed into Pakistan. In exchange for annual payments, the Inter-Dominion Accord of May 4, 1948, required India to provide water to the Pakistani portions of the basin. This, too, was meant to be a stopgap measure, with further talks to follow in the hopes of reaching a permanent solution.

However, negotiations quickly came to a halt, with neither side willing to compromise. David Lilienthal, former head of both the Tennessee Valley Authority and the United States Atomic Energy Commission, visited the region in 1951 to research articles for Collier's magazine. He proposed that India and Pakistan work together to develop and manage the Indus River system, possibly with World Bank assistance and financing. Eugene Black, the World Bank's president at the time, agreed. Engineers from each country formed a working group at his suggestion, with World Bank engineers providing advice.However, political considerations prevented even these technical discussions from reaching an agreement. The World Bank submitted a proposal for a solution to the impasse in 1954. In September 1960, Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistani President Mohammad Ayub Khan signed the Indus Waters Treaty after six years of negotiations.

The treaty gave Pakistan the waters of the western rivers, the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab, and India the waters of the eastern rivers, the Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej. It also authorized the funding and construction of dams, link canals, barrages, and tube wells, most notably the Tarbela Dam on the Indus River and the Mangla Dam on the Jhelum River. These assisted in providing Pakistan with the water it had previously received from the rivers now assigned to India's exclusive use.The World Bank's member countries provided the majority of the funding. The treaty required the establishment of a Permanent Indus Commission, with a commissioner from each country, to maintain a channel of communication and to attempt to resolve questions about treaty implementation. A dispute resolution mechanism was also provided.

The Permanent Indus Commission has successfully resolved numerous disputes over the years. In a significant challenge to the treaty, India completed the Kishanganga dam in Kashmir and continued construction on the Ratle hydroelectric power station on the Chenab River in 2017, despite Pakistan's objections and ongoing negotiations with the World Bank over whether the designs of those projects violated the treaty's terms.

Parliament Panel: Renegotiating Indus Water Treaty to address impact of climate change

In its report to the Lok Sabha, a parliamentary panel recommended that the Indus Water Treaty be renegotiated with Pakistan in order to address the impact of climate change on water availability in the river basin.

Important Points

1. It also suggests addressing other issues that are not covered by the Indus-water agreement.
2. The Standing Committee on Water Resources also recommended that India constantly monitor Chinese actions to ensure that major interventions on the Brahmaputra River are avoided.
3. Because interventions on the Brahmaputra River could harm India's national interests.

Indus Waters Treaty 

1. The waters of the eastern rivers Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi were allotted to India for unrestricted use under the Indus Water Treaty of 1960 between India and Pakistan. Waters from western rivers, such as the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab, were largely assigned to Pakistan.
2. However, India has been granted the right to generate hydroelectricity on western rivers through run-of-the-river projects. This project is subject to specific design and operation criteria.
3. The treaty also allows Pakistan to object to Indian hydroelectric project designs on western rivers.

Parliamentary Panel Recommendations

1. The Parliamentary Panel recommends that the government investigate the feasibility of making full use of the provisions regarding full utilization of all accessible water from eastern rivers.
2. It also suggests using provisions to maximize the irrigation and hydropower potential of western rivers, as well as allowable water storage.
3. According to the panel, while the Indus Water Treaty has stood the test of time, it was drafted using knowledge and technology available in the 1960s. As a result, India and Pakistan's perspective at the time was limited to river management and water usage through the construction of dams, barrages, canals, and hydro-power generation.
4. The agreement did not address current issues such as climate change, global warming, and environmental impact assessment, among others. As a result, the panel recommends that the treaty be renegotiated in order to establish an institutional structure or legislative framework that can address the impact of climate change on water availability in the Indus basin, as well as other challenges that are not addressed by the treaty.