New Delhi, Apr 24: Following the deadly terrorist attack in Pahalgam, the Ministry of External Affairs announced a series of strong measures in response, including the abeyance of the Indus Waters Treaty "with immediate effect, until Pakistan credibly and irreversibly abjures its support for cross-border terrorism."

But what exactly is the Indus Waters Treaty, and why does its suspension matter? How has the neighbouring country reacted to this move?

Indus Waters Treaty

The Indus Waters Treaty was signed in 1960, following nine years of negotiations between India and Pakistan, with the assistance of the World Bank, which is also a signatory. The negotiations were initiated by former World Bank President Eugene Black. Recognised as one of the most successful international treaties, it has endured frequent tensions, including conflict, and has provided a framework for irrigation and hydropower development for over half a century. Former US President Dwight Eisenhower described it as "one bright spot ... in a very depressing world picture that we see so often."

The Treaty allocates the Western Rivers (Indus, Jhelum, Chenab) to Pakistan and the Eastern Rivers (Ravi, Beas, Sutlej) to India. At the same time, the Treaty allows each country certain uses of the rivers allocated to the other. The treaty gives India 20% of the water from the Indus River System and the rest 80% to Pakistan.

The preamble of the treaty says, "The Government of India and the Government of Pakistan, being equally desirous of attaining the most complete and satisfactory utilisation of the waters of the Indus system of rivers and recognising the need, therefore, of fixing and delimiting, in a spirit of goodwill and friendship, the rights and obligations of each in relation to the other concerning the use of these waters and of making provision for the settlement, in a cooperative spirit, of all such questions as may hereafter arise in regard to the interpretation or application of the provisions agreed upon herein, have resolved to conclude a Treaty in furtherance of these objectives, and for this purpose have named as their plenipotentiaries."

How the Treaty works?

According to the World Bank, the Treaty sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries regarding their use of the rivers, known as the Permanent Indus Commission, which has a Commissioner from each country. The Treaty also sets forth distinct procedures to handle issues which may arise: "questions" are handled by the Commission; "differences" are to be resolved by a Neutral Expert; and "disputes" are to be referred to an ad hoc arbitral tribunal called the "Court of Arbitration."

As a signatory to the Treaty, the World Bank's role is limited and procedural. In particular, its role in relation to "differences" and "disputes" is limited to the designation of individuals to fulfil certain roles in the context of Neutral Expert or Court of Arbitration proceedings when requested by either or both of the Parties.

Past disputes

In September 2024, India sought changes to the Indus Water Treaty and formally notified Pakistan of its intention to amend the pact. The longstanding dispute concerned the Kishanganga and Ratle hydroelectric projects, prompting India to seek a modification to the treaty. Pakistan had objected to the building of the Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants by India, saying that it violates the provisions of the treaty. India insisted on its right to build these projects and holds that their design is fully in compliance with the treaty guidelines.

The Indus Waters Treaty was in the spotlight in the aftermath of the Pulwama attack in 2019. The treaty has been criticised for being too generous to Pakistan even when it has continued to promote terror in India. The then Union Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari had declared that water from the eastern rivers, which earlier used to flow downstream to Pakistan, will be diverted to Jammu and Kashmir and the Punjab region.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after the Uri terror attack in 2016, had said that blood and water can't flow together. 'Rakt aur paani ek saath nahin beh sakta' (blood and water cannot flow together)."

Pakistan's reaction

Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif pushed back strongly against India's decision to suspend the Indus Water Treaty in response to the recent Pahalgam terror attack. Asif claimed that the treaty is clear in its terms and accused India of trying to evade the treaty for years through "various tricks and pretexts."

Sharing a picture of the provisions of the Indus Water Treaty, Asif on X wrote, "These are the relevant provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. These provisions do not require any interpretation. They contain the procedure for amending the treaty and inserting new provisions. What India can and cannot do is clearly stated. Pakistan is also bound by the same procedure. India has been trying to evade this treaty for many years through various tricks and pretexts. It is using this unfortunate incident of terrorism only to fulfill an old desire of its own.

In response to India's announcement of tough measures against Pakistan, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar stated that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called a meeting of the National Security Committee on Thursday morning to discuss and address India's actions.

Sharing a post on X, Dar wrote, "Prime Minister Mohammad Shehbaz Sharif @CMShehbaz has convened the meeting of the National Security Committee on Thursday morning 24th April 2025 to respond to the Indian Government's statement of this evening."

According to a report by Dawm, National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq criticised India's "baseless and false" allegations against Pakistan while condemning the attack and extending his condolences.

"The immediate accusation against Pakistan after the incident shows Indian malice. The aim of India's conspiracy is to divert attention from the atrocities in Kashmir ... The suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty after the false flag operation is condemnable," he said, demanding that the international community take notice of India's "dramatic tactics." He further alleged that India wanted to sabotage the Indus Water Treaty through such "vile propaganda".

Former Information, Science & Technology Minister Fawad Chaudhry said suspending the Indus Water Treaty violated international law and the treaty itself.

"India under international law cannot put Indian Basin treaty in abeyance, it will be gross violation of treaty law, this childish decision will effect only the poor farmers of Punjab and Sindh," Chaudhry wrote on X.

Meanwhile, Michael Kugelman, Director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center noted that the treaty has long served as a confidence-building measure (CBM) in India-Pakistan relations.

Sharing a post on X, Kugelman wrote, "It's hard to overstate the significance of suspending the IWT. It's never happened before. It has been a consistent CBM for India-Pakistan relations--and also a success story for transboundary water agreements in a region that doesn't have many of them that work well."

Apart from the abeyance of the Indus Water Treaty, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) took the following measures, which included five key decisions.

"The Defence/Military, Naval and Air Advisors in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi are declared Persona Non Grata. They have a week to leave India. India will be withdrawing its own Defence/Navy/Air Advisors from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. These posts in the respective High Commissions are deemed annulled. Five support staff of the Service Advisors will also be withdrawn from both High Commissions," Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said. He also mentioned that the Integrated Check Post at Attari will be closed with immediate effect.

As many as 26 people were killed in the dastardly attack by terrorists on tourists in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday.

The attack, carried out by terrorists at Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam on Tuesday, is one of the deadliest in the Valley since the 2019 Pulwama strike in which 40 CRPF jawans were killed. The attack was one of the biggest terror attacks in the region after the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.

(ANI)

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