Ministry suggests water treaty with Kabul to avoid dispute

Water sharing modelled on Indus Waters Treaty advocated.

ISLAMABAD:

The Ministry of Water and Power has proposed to the government to ink a water treaty with Afghanistan to enjoy water rights over Kabul River and avoid any dispute between the two countries.

After India which is building dams on Chenab and Jhelum Rivers, posing a threat to Pakistan’s irrigation system, Afghanistan has emerged as another country which is constructing 13 dams on Kabul River with a water storage capacity of 4.7 million acre feet (MAF). Indian experts are said to be assisting Afghanistan in building these dams.

Pakistan is seeking intervention of the United States and the World Bank into the matter and desires to reach an accord on the pattern of Indus Waters Treaty signed with India or at least put in place a mechanism of information-sharing on building of dams on Kabul River to avoid any dispute on water issues.

Pakistan also wants assurances from Afghanistan that it will not build such storages which will reduce water supply for the irrigation system.

“We had suggested to the government to take up the dam issue with Afghan President Hamid Karzai during his visit to Pakistan on June 10,” a source quoted the water ministry as saying.

Sources told The Express Tribune the ministry sought information about the progress on building of dams by Afghanistan, but the Foreign Office did not disclose the response, if any, by the Afghan president. Pakistan receives 16 to 17 per cent of water supply from Kabul River. According to data released by the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda), 38,500 cusecs were received from Kabul River at Nowshera on June 21.

Diversion of Chitral River

Chitral River contributes water to Kabul River and the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) has proposed diversion of water from Chitral River to Panjkora River to prevent water from entering Kabul River.

This way, according to Irsa, a dam could be built to store five to seven million acre feet of water. But the water and power ministry did not endorse the proposal, sources said.

According to the Economic Survey 2010-11, Pakistan’s agricultural performance depends on availability of irrigation water. Against normal water availability at canal heads of 103.5 million acre feet, water shortfall for crops was 2.5 per cent in 2005-06 compared to 20.6 per cent in 2004-05.

During the current fiscal year 2010-11, water supply for Kharif crops of rice, sugarcane and cotton has recorded a shortfall of 20 per cent than normal supplies and 21 per cent than last year’s Kharif season.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 22^nd, 2011.