Pakistan and India’s shared waters
— Kofi Annan, former UN secretary-general
The period between 2005 and 2015 was declared the decade of water cooperation by the UN and concepts of transboundary water collaboration, shared waters and shared responsibilities were initialled. Co-riparian states were asked to use this, so that natural resources could be used for the common good and for development, and not for conflicts and wars.
Pakistan and India are among 145 countries which share common international basins. Decrease in water quality, climate change, migration, population influx and several other factors have influenced both the riparian states to develop water cooperation mechanisms to meet their challenges. The recent floods in the rivers Chenab and Jhelum have caused severe damage to the people, their livelihood and the environment. In Pakistan, many blame India for discharging waters without advance information sharing. But this is an absurd idea. How can India kill people in occupied Kashmir or Indian areas touching the Chenab and Jhelum river beds?
The main irritant of the water conflict between Pakistan and India is sharing of information between them. The UN and several other regional forums have developed systems to deal with conflicts of water-sharing on common and shared basins. Pakistan and India signed the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) in 1960, which fixed and delimited the rights and obligations of both countries concerning the use of waters of the Indus River system.
Decrease in water quality, increase in demand, and control over water has affected the cross-border political relationship between Pakistan and India, and if both shared-basin riparian states are not going to resolve these issues through a one-basin approach, things may worsen.
It is in Pakistan’s interest to persuade India to follow international laws and the spirit of the IWT framework. The IWT recognises Pakistan’s right on the western rivers. Being lower riparian, Pakistan has an edge over Indian claims on shared waters. Water commissions have been established on both sides to ensure data-sharing related to water flow, construction of any structure, and flood warnings.
Pakistan’s Indus River Commission has said several times that India is constructing more than 200 dams and hydropower structures on all three western rivers and especially on the Jhelum and the Chenab. Pakistan went to the International Court of Arbitration (ICA) to stop India from constructing conventional dams. The ICA barred India from constructing anything permanent. When Pakistan went to a neutral expert, the verdict was given in India’s favour and some river projects were allowed. According to the IWT document, we have recognised certain quantum of water as India’s on the western rivers.
In this situation, the only option left for Pakistan is to pursue its case as a lower riparian state to protect water
On December 11, 2011, the UN general assembly adopted a resolution on the Law of Transboundary Aquifers, which suggested that states “make appropriate bilateral or regional arrangements for the proper management of their transboundary aquifers”.
It is time to develop a transboundary water cooperation commission under the IWT mandate to develop a futuristic and viable plan for water use. Globally recognised instruments and protocols are the way forward to protect our rights on shared waters for sustainable development.
Interestingly, both states are avoiding signing the 1997 UN Convention on Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses because this convention ensures “equitable and reasonable use” and “the obligation not to cause significant harm” to neighbours and co-sharers. This international instrument specifically established the key principles to facilitate states regarding issues that arise from shared international watercourses. Signing of this treaty by Pakistan and India can be a great start in transboundary cooperation to develop a prosperous region.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 30th, 2014.
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@Dipak: All the earth and water belongs to Allah.
India have been making mistake about the nature of Pakistan 's intention.Pakistan is fighting religious war against India. No amount of political, economical consideration can have impact on Pakistan's behaviour. Its time to cite supreme national interest and change of material circumstances by Chinese dams to walk out of this unjust treaty which is sustaining enemy entity.
Indus water treaty was biased deal against India. Nehru signed it by mistake to please pakistan 80% of water from India goes to Pakistan while only 20% of them come to India. Kashmir valley lives without water & India should renegotiate or cancel this deal that have helped Pakistan Punjab become rich & sponsor jihad n kashmir at its state policy!
There is no question of signing Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses with a rogue nation.
Time to stop cross-border terrorism from Pakistan. Agree?
Fuelling fire doesn’t resolve such issues. One has to be just and transparent. India and Pakistan lose benefits of nature’s gift i.e. Indus Waters by fuelling such jingoism. This xenophobia will lead us to lose benefit from our shared river waters for generations. People near border on both sides understand that water conflict hurt them directly so they have much higher interests and stakes in 'Peace'. For them 'Optimum Utilization of Waters of Indus Basin' is directly proportionate to their economic prosperity. It is inhuman to ignore importance of Storage Dams to fully utilize waters of Indus for power generation, flood control, irrigation, drinking and commercial industrial uses.
The writer has raised the valid issue about development of water cooperation mechanisms. In this please read Article VII of IWT which deals with:
a) establishment of Hydrologic and Meteorological observation stations; b) Drainage and engineering works on rivers; and c) Supply of data, as may be available, to other party.
My Pakistani brothers always harp upon only at c) above and did not indulge in any cooperation or cost sharing of a) and b). Even today over 5 maf to 11 maf of Ravi, Beas and Satluj water flows into Pakistan as per GoP’s own documents. We both can build barbed wires along Indo Pak border, but can't build dams all along the border. Between 8 maf to 92 maf of Indus water flows in sea every year in Pakistan in the absence of dams. The Indus Water flowing in sea is many times more than even what Pakistan receives from India. Read more about Pakistan’s water management.
I give only one example – It is horrific that even today Chenab’s annual flows at Baglihar Dam site is 25,000 mcm against Pakistan’s 'Pondage' or live storage demand of only around 6.22 mcm. Which is not even a fraction of the total flow of water? Indian designed storage is 37 mcm which is less than 3 days total flow and only 30% of it flows through turbines. Poundage, for which hue and cry is made is just 0.13% of the annual flows. Even 100 dams shall not pond even 1% of such waters.
The inflow in barrages in Pakistan can provide continuous flow in canals. One more fact missed is that substantial inflows to Pakistan even today are colossal and causing flooding every year. WILL MEDIA IN PAKISTAN DO SOMETHING CONSTRUCTIVE IN THIS DIRECTION?
Pakistan was getting 1500 cubic meters of water per person per year at the time of independence, it still gets the same amount but population has exploited six times and people want to forget that.