New Delhi: India suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan in the wake of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. Over a month after its suspension, a drastic drop in water sources has been reported in the neighbouring country.
According to the latest data released by the Pakistani government, water levels in the Indus and Jhelum rivers on Pakistan’s side have currently plummeted. But, Punjab province has been the most badly affected, essentially due to a “sudden decrease” in the inflow of the Chenab River.
On the basis of the data from Pakistan’s Indus River System Authority (IRSA), as of June 2, the total water availability in Punjab stands at 1,28,800 cusecs. This is 14,800 cusecs less than what was available at the same time last year.
Besides, IRSA pointed out that the water availability in the Indus River system in Punjab has gone down by 10.3 per cent. This scenario is set get worse as the southwest monsoon for Pakistan is only four weeks away.
Impact on summer crop season
The water crunch in Pakistan’s Punjab will directly have an impact on the summer crop season. Because of the limited water availability, the region is preparing for irrigation problems amid scorching summer heat.
IRSA pointed out that the sudden drop in river Chenab inflows at Marala because of short supply by India “would result in more shortage in early kharif season”.
Last week, at an international glacier preservation conference in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed concern that the looming water shortfall could aggravate in the coming weeks, particularly during the early phase of the kharif sowing season.
Pakistan has reported a drop in water levels at the Tarbela and Mangla dams, due to India’s continued reduction of water flow in the Indus rivers.
The IRSA reported that Pakistan is already facing a 21 per cent overall shortage in water flow, along with an approximately 50 per cent live storage deficit in its two major dams — key sources for hydropower generation and irrigation supply in the provinces of Punjab and Sindh.
To make matters worse, India is not sharing water data with Pakistan as the 1960 pact remains in abeyance. This is adding to the complications in the ongoing water crisis that Pakistan is reeling under.
Following the Pahalgam attack, New Delhi declared that the Indus Waters Treaty would remain suspended until Pakistan admits its involvement in the terror activities and takes measures to combat cross-border terrorism.
