SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir has suffered economic losses of over Rs 60,000 crore due to the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) since the bilateral pact came into force in 1960, according to an expert.
“Jammu and Kashmir has been the sufferer, worst hit by the IWT,” said former Professor of Economics at Kashmir University, Dr Nisar Ali, demanding a scientific assessment to know the true extent of the loss.
The estimated losses are around Rs 60,000 crore, while official reports peg them at Rs 20,000 crore between 1960 and 1998, Dr Ali said. Under the IWT, Pakistan received an allocation of the western rivers (Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab), while India received the eastern rivers (Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej). According to Dr Ali, J&K’s losses began to mount as it was not allowed to construct dams beyond a certain height and “we cannot irrigate more than 13 lakh hectares of land”.
As a result, the state failed to make optimum use of the Chenab and Indus waters, he said, adding: “We cannot make big dams for power projects. We must utilise the run-of-the-river resources. If we had big dams, we could have stored more water and generated more electricity.” Such underutilisation led to the loss of electricity as a resource and limited agricultural activities, which, in turn, impacted development. Else, “we could have big industries here”. Experts contend that of J&K’s hydro potential of 20,000 MW, only 3,400 MWs have been harnessed.
The result is that from being a self-sufficient economy in 1954, J&K is now dependent on central funds, and the IWT is partly responsible for this, according to the Professor.
Sources said that past state governments had twice attempted to quantify the losses J&K suffered due to IWT by hiring external consultants. However, the first attempt in 2013 did not see the light of day because the consultant backed out because of official cold-shouldering. The second one in 2018 was shelved for unknown reasons, he said.