Indus Water Treaty team inspects dams in Jammu

JAMMU: A delegation under the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) between India and Pakistan inspected two upcoming hydel power projects in Jammu’s Kishtwar on Monday, official sources said.
Besides delegates from India and Pakistan, the 38-strong team comprised international experts and neutral members from other countries such as US, France, Britain, Kenya, Russia, Switzerland, South Africa and Denmark.
IWT was signed in 1960 by then PM Jawaharlal Nehru and then Pakistani President Ayub Khan under the aegis of the World Bank to use waters in the Indus and its tributaries.
According to the treaty, India has control over the waters of Beas, Ravi and Sutlej , all flowing through Punjab. Pakistan has its share in the waters of the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum that flow through J&K.
In Kishtwar on Monday, the delegation inspected the Pakal Dul and Lower Kalnai dams over a Chenab tributary as Pakistan had raised objections to the hydel projects with the World Bank, saying they would reduce its share of waters. The World Bank then deputed international experts and neutral delegates.
Since the treaty was signed, there have been many such visits of Pakistani delegations from time to time. The last was in Jan 2019 to inspect the two hydel projects. After that, the Pakistani delegations stopped coming as bilateral ties deteriorated following the revocation of J&K’s special status.