Somewhere in the upper reaches of the Chenab, beyond the snowfields of Lahaul-Spiti, engineers are drilling an 8.7-kilometre tunnel through a Himalayan mountain. When completed, it will silently redirect water that has flowed toward Pakistan for millions of years, channelling it instead into India’s Beas River system – away from the fields of Pakistani Punjab, […]
water
India’s water weaponisation undermines regional peace: Chinese scholar
India’s recent provocative announcement to completely halt water flows into Pakistan represents a reckless and dangerous act of transboundary water weaponization, which gravely endangers regional peace and defies fundamental international obligations. This was stated by Prof Cheng Xizhong, Senior Research Fellow at the Charhar Institute, a non-governmental Chinese think-tank on diplomacy and international studies based […]
‘All nations must adhere to globally recognised treaties on water resources’
Chairman WAPDA Lt Gen Muhammad Saeed (Retd), along with a 3-member delegation, represented Pakistan in the 17th International Infrastructure Investment and Construction Forum (IIICF) in Macao Special Administrative Region. The 3-day IIICF is being jointly organized by China International Contractors Association and Macao Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute. Established in 2010, IIICF serves as an […]
Water, war, warning
Water is life. This is not a metaphor. For 250 million Pakistanis, the rivers that flow from the mountains of the north are not a convenience or a luxury. They are the foundation of everything, such as food, farming, survival itself. When India’s water minister stands before cameras and declares that not a single drop […]
Water as a Weapon: Unravelling of a Treaty the World Once Called a Miracle (Part II)
Pakistan’s formal position is unambiguous: the Indus Waters Treaty remains legally binding, its obligations are not subject to unilateral modification, and India’s 2023 notice of intent to renegotiate has no standing under international law. That position has substantial legal backing. IWT contains no provision permitting unilateral withdrawal or modification. Article XII of the treaty specifies […]
Water as a Weapon: Unravelling of a Treaty the World Once Called a Miracle (Part I)
There is a river that has flowed through the heart of Pakistani Punjab for centuries. Farmers along its banks have measured their seasons by it, calibrated their sowing to it, and built civilisations around the certainty of its arrival. The Chenab is not merely a river to Pakistan. It is a lifeline. And for the […]
Pakistan vulnerable to seasonal water shortages, experts warn
Pakistan can currently store only about 30 days of river flow, leaving the country vulnerable to seasonal water shortages and sudden disruptions, experts have warned. They described the “weaponisation of water” as one of the gravest threats to the Indus Waters Treaty, a landmark agreement that has survived wars and decades of diplomatic tensions between […]
Pakistan to launch ‘first-ever’ water, sanitation database amid climate risks
Pakistan’s climate change ministry said on Tuesday it has kicked off work on the country’s “first-ever” National Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Accounts to establish a unified national database for climate-resilient and sustainable delivery of water, sanitation and hygiene services. Pakistan ranks among nations most vulnerable to climate change and has seen erratic changes in […]
Water under Siege
World Water Day arrived this year with Pakistan issuing a warning that should not be mistaken for ritual diplomacy. In his message on Sunday, President Asif Ali Zardari urged India to restore the full implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty and condemned what he called the “deliberate weaponisation of shared water resources”. His choice of […]
Punjab CM approves large-scale water storage project
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has ordered a grand crackdown against hoarders and profiteers involved in stockpiling petroleum products. On the directives of the chief minister, the Punjab Enforcement and Regulatory Authority has been mobilised across the province. Authorities have been instructed to take strict action against elements creating artificial shortages in order to […]