In response to the Pahalgam terror attack by Pak-based terrorists, India has suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty and halted the flow of Indus River water to Pakistan.
India will ensure that no water from the Indus River is wasted or allowed to flow into Pakistan, the government said on Friday. It announced plans on three fronts — short-term, mid-term, and long-term — to prevent the river’s water from reaching Pakistan. The move came after India decided to suspend the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, in response to the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam carried out by Pakistan-based terrorists.
Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil said arrangements will be made to ensure not a single drop of water is wasted. According to sources, the capacity of dams along the Indus basin rivers will be increased to store more water.
Earlier, the government issued a formal notification implementing its decision to suspend the treaty and served it to Pakistan on Thursday, a day after New Delhi announced the move.
The notification stated that the Indus Waters Treaty is being held in “abeyance”, effectively suspending all treaty obligations, including meetings between Indus Commissioners, data sharing, and advance notice of new projects.
With the treaty now suspended, India is free to construct dams on the river without needing approval or consultation with Pakistan.
In a letter addressed to the Pakistani officials, India’s Water Resources Secretary Debashree Mukherjee said that sustained cross-border terrorism by Pakistan targeting Jammu and Kashmir impedes India’s rights under the Indus Waters Treaty.
“The obligation to honour a treaty in good faith is fundamental to a treaty. However, what we have seen instead is sustained cross-border terrorism by Pakistan targeting the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir,” the letter read.
Meanwhile, Pakistan on Thursday rejected India’s suspension of the Indus Water Treaty and said any measures to stop the flow of water belonging to Pakistan under the pact will be seen as an “act of war”. The countries signed the treaty in September 1960 after nine years of negotiations with the sole aim to manage issues relating to cross-border rivers.
The suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty was part of a series of punitive measures against Pakistan, which also included the cancellation of visas for Pakistani nationals, expulsion of Pakistani military attachs, immediate closure of the Attari land transit post and Obroi post, and the downsizing of diplomatic missions.