Indus Water Treaty:
10 things to know about Indus Water Treaty:
·
The Indus Waters Treaty was signed on September 19,
1960 by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistan's President Ayub
Khan.
·
It was brokered by the World Bank.
·
The treaty administers how river Indus and its
tributaries that flow in both the countries will be utilised.
·
According to the treaty, Beas, Ravi and Sutlej are to
be governed by India, while, Indus, Chenab and Jhelum are to be taken care by
Pakistan.
·
However, since Indus flows from India, the country is
allowed to use 20 per cent of its water for irrigation, power generation and
transport purposes.
·
A Permanent Indus Commission was set up as a bilateral
commission to implement and manage the Treaty. The Commission solves disputes
arising over water sharing.
·
The Treaty also provides arbitration mechanism to
solve disputes amicably.
·
Though Indus originates from Tibet, China has been
kept out of the Treaty. If China decides to stop or change the flow of the river,
it will affect both India and Pakistan.
·
Climate change is causing melting of ice in Tibetan
plateau, which scientists believe will affect the river in future.
·
It may be noted that both India and Pakistan are still
at loggerheads over various issues since Partition, but there has been no fight
over water after the Treaty was ratified.
What the disagreement is about:
India and Pakistan disagree about the construction of the
Kishenganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric power
plants being built by India (the World Bank is not financing either
project). The two countries disagree
over whether the technical design features of the two hydroelectric plants
contravene the Treaty. The plants are on respectively a tributary of the Jhelum
and the Chenab Rivers. The Treaty designates these two rivers as well as the
Indus as the “Western Rivers” to which Pakistan has unrestricted use. Among
other uses, under the Treaty, India is permitted to construct hydroelectric
power facilities on these rivers subject to constraints specified in Annexures
to the Treaty. Talks related to the Kishenganga and Ratle hydroelectric power
plants are ongoing.
Pausing Treaty processes and working with India and Pakistan:
On December 12, 2016, World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim
announced that the World Bank would pause before taking further steps in each
of the two processes requested by the parties. This was done to safeguard the
treaty, since referring the matter simultaneously to the processes sought by
each of the countries risked contradictory outcomes and worked against the
spirit of goodwill and friendship that underpins the Treaty.
Since December 2016, the World Bank has worked towards an
amicable resolution of the matter and to safeguard the Treaty.
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History of the Treaty
During the first years of Partition, the water of the Indus
was apportioned by the Inter-Dominion Accord of May 5, 1948 between India and
Pakistan which required India to release sufficient waters to the Pakistani
regions of the basin in return for annual payments from Pakistan.
The accord was, however, meant to fulfil Pakistan's immediate
requirements and was to be followed by negotiations for a more permanent
solution. Thereafter, though there was a stalemate
In 1951, David Lilienthal, former Chairman of the Tennessee
Valley Authority and of the UN Atomic Energy Commission, visited the region and
recommended that, to reduce hostility between India and Pakistan, a program to
develop and operate jointly the Indus basin river system could be evolved.
According to him, this would also lead to a settlement of the Kashmir issue.
The president of the World Bank, Eugene R Black, received the suggestion and
mediated the water sharing agreement.
In December 1954, the two sides returned to the negotiating
table and continued their meetings for the next six years. The Treaty led to
the setting up of an Indus Water Commission to adjudicate any future dispute
over the allocation of water. The commission, which has survived two wars, is
required to meet regularly to discuss potential disputes and provide an ongoing
machinery for consultation and conflict resolution through inspection, exchange
of data and visits.
How does it affect Jammu and Kashmir?
Jammu and Kashmir too has not been able to harness the full
potential of the treaty. In 2007, the Union Water Ministry had estimated Jammu
and Kashmir can increase its Irrigated Cropped Area (ICA) by 4,25,000 acres.
But today, Out of 6,00,000 Hectares of cultivated land in Jammu and Kashmir
only 1,50,000 Hectares is under irrigation. This has also affected hydropower
generation. Current estimates suggests there is a possibility of harnessing
more than 20,000 MW but today there is only an estimated 2,500 MV being
harnessed.
It is revealed from the above analysis that the actual power
potential of Jhelum, Chenab, Indus and Ravi are 3,560 MW, 10,360 MW, 2,060 MW
and 50 MW respectively. Currently, the harnessed potential of these river
basins are 750.1 MWs, 1563.8 MWs, 13.3 MWs, and 129 MWs respectively.
Power potential of Chenab:
The Chenab is at the core of Jammu and Kashmir's quest for
power. Of the 16,480 MW, the total identified potential of all the water
resources in the state put together, Chenab alone can generate 10,360 MW. So
far, only 1,531.50 MW has been harnessed.
The water level starts soaring by late May and reaches around
50,000 cusecs by June. By August, it starts receding to the normal level.
Power potential of Jhelum:
The river is a potential threat during floods when it gets up
to 95,000 cusecs (its carrying capacity is only 40 thousand cusecs). It has an
identified potential of 3,536 MW of which so far 732.60 MW has been harnessed
by the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) and 252 MW by the Power
Development Corporation (PDC). Currently, another 241.85 MW capacity is under
various stages of implementation.
Power potential of Indus:
One of the greatest rivers of the world, the Indus's
estimated annual flow stands at around 207 cubic kms. Zanskar is its left bank
tributary in Ladakh as the Shyok, Shigar and Gilgit rivers carry glacial waters
into the main river. Just a few small and micro hydropower projects have been
set up, part of the reason being that the potential spots were far away. The
NHPC has commissioned two power projects — Nimoo-Bazgoo and Chutak in Leh and
Kargil with a cumulative installed capacity of 90.26 MW.
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