Mallika Dureja
Pakistan on Indus Water Treaty
According to sources cited by PTI on Friday, India has warned Pakistan about its “intransigence” over the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) and has accused it of doing so. Islamabad received the “notice of modification” on January 25.
The IWT was ratified by India and Pakistan in September 1960 following nine years of discussions. The agreement was signed by the World Bank. The IWT lays out a framework for communication and collaboration between the two nations over the use of water from various rivers.
The sources were cited by the news agency as stating that India has consistently been a firm supporter and a responsible partner in executing the IWT in law and spirit. However, one of the sources stated that Pakistan’s activities had a negative impact on the IWT’s provisions and their implementation, forcing India to provide the proper notice for the amendment of the treaty.
In order to address its technical objections to India’s Kishenganga and Ratle Hydroelectric Projects, Pakistan had requested the appointment of an impartial expert in 2015. Islamabad withdrew the proposal the very following year and asked an arbitration court to hear its arguments.
According to the sources, Pakistan’s unilateral move was in violation of the graded dispute resolution procedure envisioned by Article IX of the IWT. India subsequently asked for the subject to be sent to a third party expert in a separate request.
This could be a big jolt to Pakistan. India has issued a notice to amend the Indus Water Treaty. Notice issued on January 25, 2023 gives a chance to Pakistan for entering into Inter Governmental Negotiations within 90 days. pic.twitter.com/bN3BSbhXVi
— Pranay Upadhyaya (@JournoPranay) January 27, 2023
According to the source, “the beginning of two concurrent processes on the same questions and the possibility of their conflicting or contradictory findings creates an unprecedented and legally untenable situation, which risks compromising the IWT itself.” The World Bank accepted this on its own, it claimed, and decided to “stop” the start of two parallel procedures and ask India and Pakistan to look for a peaceful resolution.
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Pakistan hasn’t changed, and despite India’s repeated attempts to find a mutually beneficial solution, it refused to discuss the matter during the Permanent Indus Commission’s five meetings from 2017 to 2022. The World Bank recently started taking action on both the neutral expert and Court of Arbitration processes, the sources claimed, in response to Pakistan’s continued insistence. They further stated that no IWT clause covered such concurrent assessment of the identical problems. One of the sources stated, “Faced with such a violation of IWT regulations, India has been obligated to submit notice of change.
