Ties between India and Pakistan have become increasingly strained over the past two weeks following a deadly attack in Kashmir that left 26 people dead and several others injured. The two neighbours have since announced a series of tit-for-tat measures — with India suspending the Indus Water Treaty and taking steps to restrict water flowing into the other country. Pakistani legal expert Riffat Inam Butt however noted that the recent changes could spell disaster for the country.
“The stakes are existential for Pakistan, critically reliant on the western rivers for drinking water, agriculture and hydropower. As climate shocks intensify and upstream control tightens, a stark question emerges: Can a vulnerable lower riparian nation hold its ground against a powerful upstream neighbour?” the GeoTV columnist wrote for the publication recently.
India halted the flow of water from the Baglihar Dam on Chenab River earlier this week and indicated plans to curb runoff from the Kishanganga project on the Jhelum River. Officials said New Delhi had reduced the flow of water through Chenab River by nearly 90% over the past few days. Muhammad Khalid Idrees Rana, the spokesperson for Pakistan’s Indus River System Authority, told Bloomberg that the country would have to cut water supply to its farms by 20% if the water flow stayed this low.
“Pehle Bharat ke haq ka paani bhi bahar ja raha tha…ab Bharat ka paani, Bharat ke haq me bahega, Bharat ke haq mai rukega aur Bharat ke hi kaam aayega…” said PM Modi during an event on Tuesday evening.