Indus Water Treaty: Five key facts

PM Modi’s meeting on Monday to review the Indus Water Treaty has raised the possibility that the govt may seek to alter the provisions of the 1960 agreement

For 56 years, both India and Pakistan are peacefully sharing the water of Indus and its tributaries, thanks to The Indus Water Treaty.

At a time when States within India are unable to find an amicable solution to sharing water from rivers that flow between them, India and Pakistan are living examples of how water resources can be shared through legal frame work.

For 56 years, both India and Pakistan are peacefully sharing the water of Indus and its tributaries, thanks to The Indus Water Treaty.

1	The Indus Waters Treaty was signed on September 19, 1960 by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistan's President Ayub Khan.
2	It was brokered by the World Bank.
3	The treaty administers how river Indus and its tributaries that flow in both the countries will be utilised.
4	According to the treaty, Beas, Ravi and Sutlej are to be governed by India, while, Indus, Chenab and Jhelum are to be taken care by Pakistan.
5	However, since Indus flows from India, the country is allowed to use 20 per cent of its water for irrigation, power generation and transport purposes.
6	A Permanent Indus Commission was set up as a bilateral commission to implement and manage the Treaty. The Commission solves disputes arising over water sharing.
7	The Treaty also provides arbitration mechanism to solve disputes amicably.
8	Though Indus originates from Tibet, China has been kept out of the Treaty. If China decides to stop or change the flow of the river, it will affect both India and Pakistan.
9	Climate change is causing melting of ice in Tibetan plateau, which scientists believe will affect the river in future.
10	It maybe noted that both India and Pakistan are still at loggerheads over various issues since Partition, but there has been no fight over water after the Treaty was ratified. ....................................................................... prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting on Monday with senior government officials to review the Indus Waters Treaty has raised the possibility that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government may seek to alter or scrap the provisions of the 1960 pact with Pakistan. The Modi government is under tremendous public pressure to take action against Pakistan to rein in terrorism emanating from its soil against India in the aftermath of the killing of 18 soldiers in the Uri terror attack on 18 September. But the key question is: Can India take unilateral action to alter the provisions of the treaty? There are no straightforward answers to this question. To put it in perspective, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah noted in a Tweet on Friday that the 1960 World Bank-mediated Indus Water Treaty between India and Pakistan has survived three wars and numerous lows in India-Pakistan relations. Not surprisingly, it is regarded as one of the great success stories of water diplomacy between two neighbours, whose relations are often fractious. What is the 1960 Indus Water Treaty? The treaty was signed by India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru with Pakistani president Ayub Khan on 19 September 1960 in Karachi. The Indus Waters Treaty primarily covers the water distribution and sharing rights of six rivers—Beas, Ravi, Sutlej, Indus, Chenab, and Jhelum. All the rivers of the Indus Basin are in India (although both of them originate in Chinese-controlled territories). In simple terms, the treaty is an arrangement to implement a fair distribution of a natural resource between India and Pakistan. It also provides for mechanisms to resolve disputes over water sharing. What are the provisions of the water-sharing agreement? Under the treaty, Pakistan received exclusive use of waters from the Indus and its westward flowing tributaries, the Jhelum and Chenab, while the Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej rivers were allocated for India’s use. Although India can construct storage facilities on “Western rivers” of up to 3.6 million acre feet, it has so far not taken recourse to it so far. Water as a weapon Post-the Uri attack, most media debates and discussions to punish Pakistan has centered on using the treaty or more precisely “water as a weapon” against Pakistan. But it is easier said than done. First, India lacks storage facilities to create a drought in Pakistan in the immediate term. Also, it is a huge infrastructural challenge to diver the waters of the three rivers (Indus, Jhelam and Chenab) to other geographical regions in India. Strictly speaking, India can temporarily stop the flow of water but cannot divert it. The China factor Moreover, India cannot ignore the China factor as both major rivers originate in Tibet. India does not have a treaty with China pertaining to this. Neighbourhood jitters Any unilateral action to scrap the treaty will draw criticism from world powers and may instill fear among other neighbours such as Nepal and Bangladesh with which India has similar treaties.