The Indus Water Treaty

Indus Water Treaty Explained

Indus Water Treaty Between India and Pakistan:

The Kishanganga and the Ratle are the two run-of-the-river hydroelectric power projects of the Government of India in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

However, India and Pakistan disagree over whether the technical design features of the two projects contravene the Indus Water Treaty, 1960.

Pakistan asked the World Bank to facilitate the establishment of a Court of Arbitration to consider its concerns, while India asked for the appointment of a Neutral Expert to consider similar concerns over the two projects.

Indus Water Treaty: Kishanganga Hydroelectric Power Project

• About: It is a run-of-the-river hydroelectric power project by the Government of India on the Neelum River (or Kishanganga), a tributary of the Jhelum River.
• Location: It is located near Dharmahama Village, 5 km north of Bandipore in the Kashmir valley.
• Project details:
  • The project includes a concrete-face rock-fill dam designed to divert water from the Kishanganga River through a tunnel to a power plant in the Jhelum River basin.
• Timeline:
  • Construction on the project began in 2007 and was expected to be complete in 2016.
  • It was halted in 2011 due to a concern of Pakistan that the project will impact the flow of the Kishanganga River to downstream areas in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
  • In 2013, The Hague’s Permanent Court of Arbitration (CoA) ruled that India could divert all the water leaving a minimum amount of water to the downstream of the dam on Kishanganga River for the purpose of environmental flows.

• • Accordingly, India announced for the lowering of the height of the dam. Pakistan, however, claimed that India was violating the treaty as well as the court’s verdict.
  • In 2016, Pakistan asked the World Bank to appoint a court of arbitration to review the designs of the project. India rejected the suggestion, saying that Pakistan’s objections were technical in nature and that the matter should be decided by a neutral expert.

Indus Water Treaty: Ratle Hydroelectric Power Project

• About: It is a run-of-the-river hydroelectric power project by the Government of India on the Chenab River.
• Location: It is located near the Drabshalla Village in Kishtwar district of the Jammu and Kashmir.
• Project details: It includes a 133 m tall gravity dam and two power stations adjacent to one another.
• Timeline:
  • In June 2013, the then Indian Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for the dam.
  • The Pakistan government in 2013 had objected to the construction of the dam, claiming that it was not in conformity with the Indus Water Treaty.
  • In August 2017, the World Bank allowed India to construct the dam.
  • Pakistan has approached the World Bank with fresh protests, but the Centre has now decided to go ahead with the construction.

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