India may pull out of water talks with Pakistan in US

NEWDELHI: India and Pakistan are set for another showdown over the Indus waters treaty with New Delhi finding the World Bank’s proposal of a secretary level meeting in Washington next month against the ‘spirit of the pact’.

Earlier this week, Pakistan water and power minister Khwaja Asif announced that the two countries would hold a “three-day ‘way forward’” meeting on the Ratle and Kishenganga projects in April in Washington. Sources say India believes that there is no need to look for another mechanism to break the deadlock since the treaty already had a dispute resolution system built in it.

India also believes the World Bank which brokered the pact in 1960 has lately been “biased” in following the treaty provisions. Sources indicated that India cannot be party to any meeting “which is against the provisions of the Indus waters treaty”, putting the US meet under a cloud.

These sources maintain that World Bank is playing the role of a ‘mediator’ whereas it should be a ‘facilitator’ between India and Pakistan to resolve the issues “in accordance with the provisions of the Indus waters treaty”. The World Bank had suggested the meeting of water resources secretaries for three days in April.

New Delhi feels the World Bank continues to work against the spirit of the pact by initiating two separate dispute resolution mechanisms.

In the dispute of Kishenganga project, India wanted the neutral experts mechanism to solve the issue but Pakistan favoured arbitration. The World Bank had kicked in the two mechanisms at the same time, much to the anger of India last year.

Indian and Pakistani officials of the Indus waters commission who met in Islamabad on March 21 and 22 could not make much progress on the issues. Indus water commissioner PK Saxena led the Indian delegation while the Pakistani side which was headed by Mirza Asif Saeed.

For the Indian side, the main issue now is resolving differences the over Kishenganga and Ratle hydro power projects.

The two projects are being constructed on Jhelum and Chenab rivers respectively.

Pakistan is set to raise issues related to three dams — Pakuldul, Miyar and Lower Kalnai.