The Pakistan Kisan Board (PKB) termed the Indus Water Treaty a conspiracy to deprive Pakistan of its due share of water. Addressing a press conference here on Monday, Khurshid Kanju, President of PKB Punjab, stated that India was behind the present water crises in Pakistan. He said that the continuous low flow into the western rivers, particularly into the river Chenab was a worrying development.
He said that India had constructed several dams on the river Chenab in violation of the Indus Water Treaty. Resultantly, he added, the inflow of the river Chenab was reducing day by day. The PKB chief said that the 1960 Indus Water Treaty was against the interests of Pakistan. He maintained that India was systematically trying to block the waters of the western rivers. He asked the authorities concerned to look into matter on a war footing.
"We should dig out the real cause of low flows into the Chenab and other rivers," he stressed. Kanju said that the water shortage was causing a loss to the economy, to the tune of two billion dollars a year. "As many as eight million acres of land was being adversely affected due to the water shortage," he said, adding that this menace had put national integrity at stake. He said that the government should make efforts for resolving this vital issue.