India-Pak water row likely to intensify
INDUS WATERS TREATY World Bank accepts Pak’s demand to have court of arbitration, India says action not ‘neutral’
We have taken a very hard stand against the World Bank for not acting on India’s request to have neutral experts look into the dispute as per the provision of IWT.
NEW DELHI: The water row between India and Pakistan is set to intensify with India questioning the role of the World Bank, which has brokered the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) and plays a specific role to settle any difference between the two nations related to water sharing and projects coming up on the Indus river basin.
Taking a tough stand against the World Bank for accepting Pakistan’s demand to initiate the court of arbitration (CoA) process to resolve the dispute involving the 330 MW Kishenganga and 850 MW Ratle hydroelectric projects, India has sent a strongly worded letter to World Bank, saying its stand in the issue is not “neutral” and appears to favour Pakistan, senior government officials privy to the development told HT.
India wrote to the World Bank soon after returning from Washington where the latter had invited both countries on November 17 for mediation.
“We have told them in no uncertain terms that their action is biased and India is not going to take part in the arbitration proceedings. We have taken a very hard stand against the World Bank for not acting on India’s request to have neutral experts look into the dispute as per the provision of IWT,” said a foreign ministry official.
A senior official of the Union water resources ministry said, “Despite the fact that they had 20 days to act on our request, the World Bank did nothing. But they promptly accepted Pakistan’s demand to have CoA. India has told them in no uncertain terms that their action is biased and India is not going to take part in the arbitration proceedings.”
The latest row follows the World Bank’s decision to proceed simultaneously with the two parallel mechanisms — Pakistan’s demand for CoA and India’s demand to have neutral experts. India has termed the decision “legally untenable” and against the provision of IWT.
Sources said that India can consider knocking at the door of the United Nations if the World Bank goes ahead with both the parallel mechanisms.
The tussle involves the two hydroelectric projects coming up on Jhelum and Chenab rivers respectively. Pakistan FOREIGN MINISTRY OFFICIAL
has objected to the design of the 330 MW run-of-the-river Kishenganga project, saying that it will result in 40% reduction in water flowing to the country, flouting the provision of the IWT. Regarding the 850 MW Ratle power plant, Pakistan wants planned storage capacity of the project to be reduced to eight million cubic metre from 24 million cubic metre.
India has held that Pakistan’s charges are unfounded and the two projects are not violating any provision of the treaty.