As India has accepted Pakistan’s invitation to attend Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) dispute talks in Lahore, the All Pakistan Business Forum (APBF) has asked the government to warn the Indian Commissioner of its fast-tracked hydropower projects worth $15 billion in India-occupied Kashmir, disrupting water supplies to Pakistan.
APBF President Ibrahim Qureshi said it is good that the Indian Commissioner of the Permanent Indus Commission accepted his Pakistani counterpart’s invitation for talks on the IWT scheduled to be held in Pakistan. And it is the time for Pakistan to raise the issue of dams’ construction by the Indian government, depriving Pakistan of its due share of water, Qureshi added.
It seems, finally, India has realised the importance of this mechanism under the treaty for resolving water disputes related to the Indus water and its tributaries, he said.
He added that six hydro projects in IoK either cleared viability tests or the more advanced environment and forest expert approvals in the last few months. Together, he warned, these projects on the Chenab River would triple hydropower generation in occupied Kashmir from the current level of 3,000 MW.
He said that India has fast-tracked hydropower projects of around $15 billion in IoK, ignoring warnings from Islamabad that power stations on rivers, flowing into Pakistan, will disrupt water supply.
Qureshi urged Pakistan to oppose these projects, as they violate the World Bank treaty on the sharing of the Indus river and its tributaries upon which 80 per cent of Pakistan’s agriculture depends on.