ISLAMABAD: What was being considered a step towards improvement of relations between India and Pakistan, suffered a blow-this time due to COVID-19 global outbreak.
The meeting of their Indus Water Commissioners scheduled in first week of April has been postponed, sources said. The development came in the wake of Coronavirus pandemic.
The meeting scheduled in New Dehli, was being considered a step towards improvement of relations between the two neighbours. Relations that were already strained since February 2019, were further down graded in August last year, when India abolished special status of disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Pakistan severed all trade ties with India and down graded its diplomatic ties in protest against New Dehli’s move and launched an aggressive diplomatic camping.
According to Indus Water Treaty 1960- a an agreement brokered by World Bank on distribution of water resources between the two states, both countries have obligation to meet meet every year.
The yearly meeting between both neighboring countries is aimed to discuss and find the resolution of water conflicts with mutual understanding.
A senior official of federal ministry of water resources on condition of anonymity informed The News Today that meeting between Pakistan and Indian water commissioners was scheduled in first week of April in New Delhi, however amid the current circumstances of COVID-19 outbreak around the world, the commissioner’s offices of both countries has taken in principle decision to postponed this important annual meeting for indefinite time till normalization of current situation of COVID-19 outbreak.
Despite the signatory water agreement tagged IWT guaranteed by World Bank (WB), both countries are yet to resolved their water conflicts since last 60 years.
Pakistan has knocked the door of court of arbitration and World Bank against India to settle down various water conflicts emanating between the countries. However Islamabad failed to get any substantive relief from what it calls water aggression of its eastern neighbour.
Pakistan claims that India in sheer violation of IWT 1960 has continued building small, medium and large water reservoirs and hydro-power projects on Western rivers allocated to Pakistan. These rivers Jhelum, Chenab and Indus are backbone of Pakistan’s agriculture needs and hydro- power generation.
The prominent disputed water reservoir’s projects which India has completed on western rivers include Baglihar Dam and Kishan Ganga Hydropower projects.
Pakistan loosed its position on both disputed projects in international court of arbitration.
Indus Water Commissioner Office of Pakistan claims India is working discreetly to make Pakistan a water scarce state.
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