What is the Indus Waters Treaty at the center of India-Pakistan tensions? In the wake of the brutal Pahalgam terror attack, India has put the historic 1960 water-sharing agreement in abeyance. As Pakistan escalates with cross-border terrorism, is it time for India to rethink its water diplomacy and take tougher measures? This video breaks down: The origins and key provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty, how the treaty divides the Indus river system between India and Pakistan, why India suspended the treaty after the latest terror attacks and the consequences for Pakistan if India permanently halts water flows.
#IndusWatersTreaty #IndiaVsPakistan #WaterWar #OperationSindoor #Terrorism #PahalgamAttack #Geopolitics #IndiaNews #PakistanNews #NationalSecurity #World
🔊 LIKE ➡ SHARE ➡ SUBSCRIBE
For More Updates:
English: https://newsable.asianetnews.com/
Hindi: https://hindi.asianetnews.com/
Malayalam: https://www.asianetnews.com/
Kannada: https://kannada.asianetnews.com/
Tamil: https://tamil.asianetnews.com/
Telugu: https://telugu.asianetnews.com/
Bengali: https://bangla.asianetnews.com/
Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AsianetNewsa...
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AsianetNewsEN
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ann.newsable/
➡ If you like our video, give us a thumbs up and subscribe to our channel to get the daily dosage of news, entertainment, sports and more.
#IndusWatersTreaty #IndiaVsPakistan #WaterWar #OperationSindoor #Terrorism #PahalgamAttack #Geopolitics #IndiaNews #PakistanNews #NationalSecurity #World
🔊 LIKE ➡ SHARE ➡ SUBSCRIBE
For More Updates:
English: https://newsable.asianetnews.com/
Hindi: https://hindi.asianetnews.com/
Malayalam: https://www.asianetnews.com/
Kannada: https://kannada.asianetnews.com/
Tamil: https://tamil.asianetnews.com/
Telugu: https://telugu.asianetnews.com/
Bengali: https://bangla.asianetnews.com/
Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AsianetNewsa...
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AsianetNewsEN
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ann.newsable/
➡ If you like our video, give us a thumbs up and subscribe to our channel to get the daily dosage of news, entertainment, sports and more.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Over six decades, India honoured the Indus Waters Treaty, through wars, through terror attacks, through every provocation.
00:10But April 2025, after yet another terror attack, India puts the treaty in abeyance.
00:17Why? Because there is only so much patience in the world and India's was running on empty.
00:24Let's take a deep dive into the Indus Waters Treaty.
00:30The Indus Water System comprises the main Indus River, Jhelum, Chinab, Ravi, Bias and Sutlej.
00:41The basin is mainly shared by India and Pakistan, with a small share for China and Afghanistan.
00:48The Indus Water System begins from a glacier near Bukharchu in the Kailash Mountain range, close to Lake Mansur over on the Tibetan Plateau.
00:56From its source, the river flows northwest, entering India at Demchok in Ladakh, where it traverses the regions of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir.
01:08After passing through these Indian territories, the Indus enters Pakistan and then descends into the plains of Punjab and Sindh.
01:17Along its course in Pakistan, the river receives major tributaries, supporting vast agricultural and population centers.
01:26Ultimately, the Indus River empties into the Arabian Sea near Karachi.
01:31Ravi, Bias and Sutlej rivers flow from Himachal Pradesh and Punjab and enters Pakistan's Punjab.
01:40Jhelum flows from Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and then into Pakistan.
01:46Chinab flows from Himachal and then enters Jammu and then into Pakistan's Punjab.
01:51The Indus Waters Treaty was signed in 1960 to resolve disputes between India and Pakistan over the shearing of the Indus River waters, which intensified after the 1947 partition.
02:09The partition left India controlling the headwaters and Pakistan dependent on downstream flows.
02:14When the standstill agreement on 1st April 1948 ended, India cut off canal supplies to Pakistan.
02:21It restored the supply only after an interim inter-dominion accord on 4th May 1948.
02:29But the accusations continued, with Pakistan alleging water cuts in 1951.
02:34Pakistan escalated the water issue to the United Nations in 1951, blaming India for interrupting water supply.
02:41At this point, World Bank stepped in and proposed a water-sharing formula in 1954.
02:49As negotiations between the two countries repeatedly stalled over competing claims and fears of economic ruin, especially in Pakistan's agricultural heartland,
02:58after years of negotiations, the treaty was signed in 1960 to provide a clear, cooperative framework.
03:05Brokered by the World Bank, the Indus Waters Treaty was signed in 1960 in Karachi
03:13by the Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistani President Ayub Khan.
03:18Under the Indus Waters Treaty, India signed away 80% of the Indus river system's waters to Pakistan.
03:36The rivers originate in India, but the lion's share flows to a neighbour who seems far more interested in sending us cross-border terrorists than thank you notes.
03:46India gets unrestricted use of the three eastern rivers, Ravi, Bias and Satlaj.
03:51On the other hand, Pakistan gets the three western rivers, Indus, Jhelum and Chinab.
03:58Under this treaty, waters of eastern rivers averaging around 33 million acre-feet were allocated to India, the upper riparian country.
04:07The waters of western rivers averaging to around 135 million acre-feet were allocated to Pakistan for all purposes,
04:14including irrigation, drinking water and hydropower.
04:18And these rivers are the lifeline for Pakistan's agriculture, cities and economy.
04:25But India has also been given the right on the western rivers for irrigation and to generate hydroelectricity through run-of-the-river projects.
04:33After the end of the transition period, as was mentioned in the Indus Waters Treaty,
04:40Pakistan no longer has any claim or right to releases by India of any of the waters of the eastern rivers.
04:49The treaty also included setting up a permanent Indus Commission,
04:53a bilateral body that consists of officials, known as Indus Commissioners, from both countries
04:58and is tasked with implementing and managing the provisions of the treaty.
05:01The commission serves as the primary channel for cooperation, information exchange and conflict resolution
05:07regarding the use and development of the Indus river system.
05:11Among the major dams on the eastern rivers are Bhakra Dam on Satlej River in Himachal Pradesh,
05:28one of India's largest multi-purpose dams, crucial for irrigation and hydropower.
05:34Pong Dam on Bias River in Himachal Pradesh is another project used for major storage and hydroelectricity.
05:40On the western rivers, India has Salal Dam on Chinab River in Jammu and Kashmir,
05:46a run-of-the-river hydroelectric project.
05:49Others include 850-megawatt Rattel hydroelectric project on Chinab in Jammu and Kashmir
05:54and 330-megawatt Kishan Ganga hydroelectric project on the tributary of Jhelum in Kashmir.
06:01On the western side, projects like Rattel and Kashmir Ganga have been flashpoints not because
06:07they break the treaty but because apparently Pakistan prefers its water undisturbed and does
06:14not want India to generate a few megawatts.
06:19Pakistan had protested over the project saying that it will disrupt its water supplies.
06:24In 2015, Pakistan requested the appointment of a neutral expert to address its concerns
06:29over the two hydropower projects.
06:31But it backtracked from its position in 2016 and called for a court of arbitration instead.
06:39In a big win for India on 20 January 2025, neutral expert Michel Lino appointed under the Indus
06:45Waters Treaty ruled that he is competent to decide on the issues regarding the Kishan Ganga
06:51and Rattel hydroelectric projects.
07:00India, on 23 April 2025, after the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam, put the treaty in abeyance.
07:07What does this mean?
07:08Well, in simple language, no more water flow data to Pakistan, no more design restrictions
07:13on Indian projects, India can now create storage on western rivers, flush reservoirs and yes,
07:20even stopped those inspection tours by Pakistani officials.
07:24While India has not completely stopped the flow of western rivers' waters, it has already
07:30closed all the gates of the Bagdihar Dam on the Chinab and is planning similar regulatory
07:35actions at the Kishan Ganga Dam on the Jhelum.
07:38The World Bank, once the treaty's referee, is now just a spectator.
07:42With the treaty in abeyance, its powers are well abeyant.
07:46The World Bank president, Ajay Banga, has recently said, and I'm quoting him,
07:51we have no role to play beyond a facilitator.
08:00Now let's look at the Tulbul navigation project.
08:03India wanted to build a navigation lock at Vula Lake in Kashmir to keep Jhelum navigable
08:08in winters.
08:10Pakistan cried storage facility.
08:12He said it violated the treaty and the project was mothballed.
08:16The facts?
08:17The barrage would regulate outflow, not store water.
08:20Non-consumptive use, like navigation, is allowed.
08:24But why would Pakistan let facts get in the way?
08:27Maybe it's time to dust off those blueprints and restart Tulbul, a project which was halted
08:34in 1987.
08:41And now, Pakistan has written a letter to India urging it to reconsider the decision on the
08:47Indus Waters Treaty.
08:49Apparently, when the taps might turn off, even the loudest critics find new respect for dialogue
08:56and cooperation.
08:58Who knew?
08:58Pakistan's Ministry of Water Resources said that suspending the treaty would trigger a
09:04crisis in the country.
09:06India, on the other hand, has remained firm, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi sending a
09:12clear message to Islamabad that water and blood cannot flow together and any dialogue will
09:18be contingent on Pakistan, ending its support for cross-border terrorism.
09:23So what should India do next?
09:37Simple.
09:38Build more storage on the western rivers.
09:41Modernize existing dams for better flood control and power generation.
09:45Why?
09:45Because water is security, and after 60 years of one-sided generosity, it's time India put
09:52its own interests first.
10:00And if India keeps the taps off, Pakistan faces drought, crop failures and urban water crisis.
10:07For a country that's used to blaming India for every drop, that's a scary prospect.
10:13Maybe, just maybe, it's time for some real cooperation, and not just complains.
10:18For over 60 years, India gave more than it got.
10:22It's time for fairness, not favors.
10:24The Indus-Waters Treaty was never about aggression.
10:28But it's time now for a new deal.
10:30One that forces Pakistan to stop its state-sponsored terrorism against India.
10:43For tourists, when It's the proper place of Pakistan, trying to get to Japan if it'srir form unsur girl or whether the
10:53mask has agreed with on a relationship that is the nature of the world.
10:54There's drilling to comply what makes them different things at the moment.
10:56But opposition has worked hardày if brain thin position.
10:58It can be used to manifest those rules until Mount Stanley was not responsible for the spring.
11:00There has habençoギ easy related to the usage to wrap their ear but don't quite die.
11:03That's how people do that, but if I have to isolate the sun.
11:04There's been there, sadly, when it's got some erstmal fever presently would be enough for the time to expire in
11:07Beij to assess history.