Even though the Baglihar Hydroelectric Power Project Dam on the Chenab River currently shows all its gates closed, this situation follows a recent opening on May 8th due to heavy rainfall in Jammu and Kashmir, which posed a potential flood risk. Water level monitoring in the region remains ongoing.
This development occurs against a backdrop of strained relations and India’s current stance on the Indus Water Treaty. Despite an agreement for cessation of hostilities, the Indian government maintains that the treaty, which governs the sharing of waters from the Indus River system, is in abeyance following the Pahalgam terror attack.
The Indus system, comprising the Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej rivers, is primarily shared between India and Pakistan, with smaller portions in China and Afghanistan. The 1960 Indus Waters Treaty allocated the waters of the eastern rivers (Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas) to India for exclusive use, while Pakistan received the western rivers (Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab), with India permitted limited domestic, non-consumptive, and agricultural uses, as well as unrestricted run-of-the-river hydroelectricity projects meeting specific design and operational criteria.
India has utilized its share of the eastern rivers by constructing significant storage projects like the Bhakra Dam on the Sutlej, the Pong and Pandoh Dams on the Beas, and the Thein (Ranjitsagar) Dam on the Ravi, along with other infrastructure projects.
In a recent national address on May 12th, Prime Minister Modi emphasized a shift in India’s counter-terrorism policy, referring to “Operation Sindoor” as the new normal following the surgical strike in 2016 and the air strike in 2019. Regarding relations with Pakistan, the Prime Minister stated that the Indus Water Treaty was put in abeyance after the Pahalgam terror attack, asserting that “water and blood cannot flow together.” He further clarified that any future discussions with Pakistan would be solely focused on terrorism and the issue of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Prime Minister presented Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the Pahalgam attack, as a significant milestone and a new benchmark in India’s fight against terrorism.
