Pakistan has expressed concern over sudden changes in the flow of Indus waters between December 7 and December 15, accusing India of releasing water without prior warning. India has not yet responded formally to the letter by Pakistan's Indus Water Commissioner to his counterpart in New Delhi.
India had unilaterally suspended the 65-year-old Indus Water Treaty (IWT) following a terrorist attack on April 22 that killed 26 people in Kashmir.
Addressing a gathering of foreign diplomats on Friday, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar said the country had made an official communication to India in this regard.
The letter alleged that "unusual, abrupt variations" in flow from the Chenab river were observed between December 7 and December 15, which were similar to fluctuations detected in earlier months, specifically in April and May. It said that these changes raised concerns about their potential impact on water management and agricultural practices in the region.
Dar asked for clarification from India under the treaty’s procedures. However, the treaty was put on hold after the aforementioned terrorist attack, which prompted India to conduct a military operation deep within Pakistan targeting terrorist camps under ‘Operation Sindoor.’
Despite suspending the treaty in April, India made a couple of goodwill gestures by informing Pakistan about flood-induced disasters through its foreign office during the monsoon instead of via the Indus Water Treaty Commissioner.
Following partition, the World Bank brokered the Indus Water Treaty between India and Pakistan on September 19, 1960, after nine years of negotiations. Under this treaty, Pakistan was allocated the waters of three western-flowing rivers—Jhelum, Chenab and Indus—while India gained absolute control over the waters of the eastern rivers—Satluj, Beas and Ravi.
The western rivers together provide a total of 80 million acre-feet (MAF) of water, of which India can use only up to 3.6 MAF for non-consumptive purposes, including irrigation, drinking water supply, navigation, and hydropower generation, without altering the course of the rivers.
After the terror attack, India’s Ministry of Jalshakti notified Pakistan's Ministry of Water Resources in a letter that it was suspending the Indus waters treaty.
India had previously written a series of letters to Pakistan for renegotiation of the treaty. It underlined that the fundamental circumstances that led to the inking of the treaty had changed including significantly altered population demographics and the impact of climate change.
