Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan Sharat Sabharwal on Saturday refuted allegations of stealing water and waging a 'water war' on Pakistan. Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 is an example of "mutually beneficial co-operation between India and Pakistan for last 50 years and withstood the test of time," he said.
Addressing members of Karachi Council on Foreign Relations, Economic Affairs, Law & Pakistan, India Citizens Friendship Forum here, Sabharwal said public discourse in Pakistan has of late increasingly focussed on certain alleged acts of omission and commission on the part of India as being responsible for water scarcity in Pakistan.
"Water issue between India and Pakistan is spoken of as issue whose resolution is essential to build peace between two countries. Preposterous and completely unwarranted allegations of stealing water and waging a water war are being made against India. It is alleged that we are hindering water flows INTO brstoriesPakistan and developing infrastructure to stop and divert these flows to serve our own needs."
Sabharwal said, "such accusations bear no relation whatsoever to reality on the ground. India has been scrupulously providing Pakistan its share of water in keeping with Indus Waters Treaty. We have never hindered water flows to which Pakistan is entitled, not even during wars of 1965 & 1971 as well as other periods of tense relations and we have no intention of doing so.
"Those alleging that India is acquiring capacity to withhold Pakistan's share of water, completely ignore the fact that this would require a storage and diversion canals network on a large scale. Such a network simply does not exist and figures nowhere in our plans."
The High Commissioner said the treaty does not require India to deliver any stipulated quantities of water to Pakistan in western rivers. "Instead, it requires us to let flow to Pakistan water available in these rivers, excluding limited use permitted to India by the treaty, for which we do not need prior agreement of Pakistan. Reduced flows INTO brstoriesPakistan from time to time are not result of violation of Treaty by India or any action on our part to divert such flows or to use more than our assigned share of water from western rivers."
"One also hears accusation that India is building hundreds of dams, hydroelectric projects to deny Pakistan its share of water. This does not correspond to reality on the ground. There are no quantitative limits on hydroelectricity that India can produce using western rivers. There is also no limit to number of run-of-river projects that India can build. India has so far undertaken limited number of projects and provided information to Pakistan, as per the Treaty, in respect of 33 projects.
High Commissioner said India has all along adhered to provisions of Treaty and will continue to do so. "Angry statements targeting India can neither increase quantity of available water nor can such statements become a substitute for mechanism in the Treaty to resolve differences regarding its implementation."
He said Article VII of the treaty, deals with future co-operation, recognises common interest of both sides in optimum development of rivers and lists out avenues of future co-operation in ensuring its implementation and identify further areas of co-operation within its framework. He hoped the Treaty, which completed its first 50 years successfully, will continue to guide on water sharing. Barrister Liaquat Merchant co-chairman, PICFF & Lieutenant General Moinuddin Haider (Retd), Chairman KCFR & PICFF also spoke on the occasion.
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