Chaos in Pakistan over Indus Waters Treaty? Islamabad wrote 4 letters to Delhi urging restoration of water-sharing pact

Ever since India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) following the terror attack in Pahalgam, Pakistan has been in chaos over water-related woes. Islamabad has written to New Delhi multiple times to reconsider the decision to suspend the treaty, Hindustan Times reported, citing people aware of the matter. 

Pakistan's water resources secretary, Syed Ali Murtaza, wrote 4 times to India's Jal Shakti Ministry. In these letters, Murtaza sought a review of the decision to suspend the IWT. Three of these letters were written after Operation Sindoor, according to one of the sources. 

Pakistan has repeatedly said India cannot unilaterally suspend the treaty and that this violates the pact's provisions, sources mentioned. India formally communicated its decision to hold the treaty in abeyance to Pakistan on April 24. 

“The obligation to honour a treaty in good faith is fundamental to a treaty. However, what we have seen instead is sustained cross-border terrorism by Pakistan targeting the Indian Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir,” Debashree Mukherjee, India's water resources secretary, wrote at the time.

Despite communications from Pakistan seeking a resolution, India has maintained its stance. An official reiterated on April 29 that India "remains firm on its decision" and would not engage in discussions until Pakistan "credibly and irrevocably abjures cross-border terrorism."

Pakistani leaders have reacted strongly, declaring that any reduction in water flow under the treaty would be perceived as an "act of war." 

According to Shashi Shekhar, former Union water resources secretary, Pakistan is "desperate" as approximately 25% of its GDP relies on the Indus waters. "The consequences of the treaty’s abeyance would be fairly serious, I would assume, because it can stoke civil unrest too," Shekhar noted, emphasising the potential for internal instability in Pakistan resulting from the treaty's suspension.

Shashi Shekhar revealed that he had suggested suspending or withdrawing from the treaty as early as 2016. However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi initially preferred a collaborative approach, stressing that "water resources should be for the benefit of all."

India has ceased sharing the waterflows of the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab rivers with Pakistan, a move that has significant implications under the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960. This treaty allocates 80% of the water from these western rivers to Pakistan, making it a lifeline for Pakistan's agricultural sector and economy.