All you need to know about the Indus Waters Treaty

The Indus Waters Treaty, a water-distribution treaty between India and Pakistan brokered by the World Bank for the Indus river and its tributaries, was signed on September 19, 1960 by Jawaharlal Nehru and Ayub Khan. The Treaty gives control over the waters of the three "eastern rivers" — the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej, to India, while control over the waters of the three "western rivers" — the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum to Pakistan.

Hyderabad: September 19, 2020 would mark 60 years of the signing of the Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan.

The treaty was signed in 1960 by the then Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and the President of Pakistan Ayub Khan. It was an agreement that was proposed to give a guideline to both the countries on the usage of water of six rivers shared by the two nations. The treaty was signed following the partition of the subcontinent .

It took nine years of negotiations between India and Pakistan with the help of the World Bank, which is also a signatory in the treaty. The negotiations were the initiative of former World Bank President Eugene Black.

India and Pakistan eventually reached a decisive step for the issue with the intervention of the World Bank. Precise details were laid out about how the water will be divided. While Jhelum, Chenab and Indus (Three western rivers) were allocated to Pakistan, India received the control of Ravi, Beas and Sutlej (Three eastern rivers). The treaty also stated that aside of certain specific cases, no storage and irrigation systems can be built by India on the western rivers.

The Treaty set out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries regarding their use of the rivers, known as the Permanent Indus Commission, which has a commissioner from each country. The Treaty also set forth distinct procedures to handle issues which may arise.

As a signatory to the Treaty, the World Bank's role is limited and procedural. In particular, its role in relation to "differences" and "disputes" is limited to the designation of people to fulfil certain roles when requested by either or both of the parties.

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As per the treaty, the water commissioners of both the countries meet twice a year and arrange technical visits to projects' sites and critical river head works for inspections.

After the Uri terror attack in 2016, India suspended talks of Indus water commission and fast-tracked hydro power projects to tap the unutilised water of the Eastern rivers. The three projects include the Ujh dam project in Jammu and Kashmir, Shahpur-Kandi dam project, and a second Sutlej-Beas link in Punjab.

What is in it for India

India's share of water from Ravi, Beas and Sutlej rivers add up to 33 million acres feet (MAF). While about 95 per cent of the water was being used in the country after the construction of three main dams across the rivers, close to 5 per cent water or 1.6 MAF would flow to Pakistan.

The treaty also placed certain restrictions on India. On the rivers allocated to Pakistan – Western rivers – India was not allowed to build storages. Restrictions were also imposed on India regarding the extension of irrigation projects development, although India was given the full rights for power generation using the river water.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, under the provisions regarding the western rivers, India can use the water for the following uses, in the case of each of the rivers – Indus, Jhelum and Chenab – to the drainage basin thereof - Non-Consumptive Use; Domestic Use; Agricultural Use, and Generation of hydro-electric power.

What is in it for Pakistan

Indus, Chenab and Jhelum are the lifelines of Pakistan as the country is highly dependent on these rivers for its water supply. Since these rivers do not originate from Pakistan but flow to the country through India, Pakistan fears the threat of drought and famine.

Read:Indo-Pak relations post Simla Agreement: A chronology

While Chenab and Jhelum originate from India, Indus originates from China, making its way to Pakistan via India.

Disagreement

India and Pakistan disagree about the construction of the Kishenganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric power plants being built by India (the World Bank is not financing either project). The two countries disagree over whether the technical design features of the two hydroelectric plants contravene the Treaty. The plants are on respectively a tributary of the Jhelum and the Chenab Rivers. The Treaty designates these two rivers as well as the Indus as the "Western Rivers" to which Pakistan has unrestricted use.

Among other uses, under the Treaty, India is permitted to construct hydroelectric power facilities on these rivers subject to constraints specified in Annexures to the Treaty. Talks related to the Kishenganga and Ratle hydroelectric power plants are ongoing.

In the year 1984, India proposed to build Tulbul navigation and Wullar project on the river Jhelum, at the mouth of Wullar's lake, India's largest freshwater lake. Pakistan protested claiming that it was a violation of 1960 Indus Water Treaty. The Indian side claimed that project will make river navigable, but Pakistan believed that it could be used by India to control the river flow.

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In 2006, Indo-Pak talks on Tulbul navigation and Wullar projects took place. In Pakistan's perception, the project structure is a barrage with a storage capacity of around 0.3 million acre feet (0.369 Billion cubic metre) and that India is not permitted to construct any storage facility on the main stem of the Jhelum. Indian side has pointed out that the structure is not a storage facility but a navigation facility as defined in the Indus Waters Treaty 1960. Further, the government of India said that Wullar Lake gains natural storage and the navigation lock is merely a structure to regulate the outflow from the natural storage to facilitate adequate depth of water for navigation during the winter months from October to February.

In 2020

In August 2020, India refused a request by Pakistan to hold a meeting on issues around the Indus Water Treaty at the Atari checkpost near the India-Pakistan border. According to a senior official in Ministry of Water resources, India had suggested a virtual conference but Pakistan had insisted on a physical meeting in March 2020.

India has called for the appointment of a 'neutral party' while Pakistan favours a Court of Arbitration to agree upon final resolution on the design parameters of the Ratle power project.

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