India issues notice to Pakistan to amend Indus Waters Treaty of September 1960: Government sources

New Delhi: India has issued a notice to Pakistan for amendment of the Indus Water Treaty of September 1960. According to government sources, India has been a firm supporter and a responsible partner in implementing the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan in letter and spirit. Pakistan's actions adversely affected the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty, forcing India to issue appropriate notices to amend it.

India issued a notice to Pakistan for an amendment to the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) of September 1960. Notice was given on 25 January through the concerned commissioners for Indus water. This is according to Article XII (3) of the Indus Water Treaty. According to the source, the notice states that India has always been a steadfast supporter and a responsible partner in implementing the IWT in letter and spirit. However, Pakistan's actions have adversely affected the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty and their implementation, and have forced India to issue a proper notice for revision of the Indus Waters Treaty

In 2015, Pakistan requested the appointment of a neutral expert to investigate its technical objections to India's Kishanganga and Ratle Hydroelectric Projects (HEP). In 2016, Pakistan unilaterally withdrew the request and proposed that an arbitration court rule on its objections. This unilateral action by Pakistan is in violation of the graded mechanism of dispute resolution envisaged by Article IX of the Indus Waters Treaty.

The notice states that despite repeated attempts by India to move forward in a mutually agreeable manner, Pakistan refused to discuss the issue during five meetings of the Permanent Indus Commission from 2017 to 2022. At Pakistan's continued insistence, the World Bank has recently initiated both the Neutral Expert and Court of Arbitration procedures.

As per the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) of 1960 – between India and Pakistan on the sharing of the waters of the six rivers of the Indus basin – the two countries have the Indus Commissionerate and the Permanent Indus Commission. Which meet at least once every year alternately in India and Pakistan. Of the six rivers of the Indus basin, India has full rights over the three eastern rivers - Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi, while Pakistan has rights over the western rivers - Chenab, Jhelum, and Indus. There is an 'Indus Water Treaty' between India and Pakistan, but Pakistan gets a huge amount of additional water from the rivers of India.

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