Geopolitics of Water in South Asia: A Case-Study of Indus Water Treaty as a Conflict Resolution Mechanism for Pakistan-India Water Security Dilemma (original) (raw)

Water conflict between Pakistan and India: Implications to regional peace and security

Journal of Humanities, Social and Management Sciences (JHSMS)

Pakistan and India are water stressed countries and the seed of water conflict between the two has been sowed by the Punjab boundary commission at the time of Partition. Trans-boundary water treaties have played a significant role in resolving the water disputes though the mechanism of conflict resolution varies and structurally fails to address the future problems that may arise. Indus Water Treaty (IWT) has been examined as an efficacious Model of conflict resolution and induced cooperation from 1960s to 1980s. Pakistan claimed that India is violating IWT by building dams and diverting waters of Western Rivers flowing from India to Pakistan. Therefore, the research attempts to answer the following questions. What is the cumulative effect of Indian dams being constructed on the Western Rivers? Can India Unilaterally withdraw the treaty? What would be the implications if India violates the treaty? Holistic content analysis of qualitative method and conflict theory has been used to i...

Water Politics between Pakistan and India: An Analysis

Research Journal of Social Sciences and Economics Review (RJSSER)

Pakistan is blessed with rich natural resources in which water resources are the major ones. Yet the level of this important resource has been reached at an alarming level due to myriad factors such as misuse, mismanagement, and politics in water sectors at both levels national and international. The study is presenting an overview of the state of the Indus Water Treaty, Indus River Basin, and conflict between India and Pakistan in the wake of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT). The focus of the study is to reveal the hegemony of India on international waters and its relations with the outer world. Moreover, the research study has presented root causes of the water crisis, hydro politics in the South Asia region, the hegemony of India on international waters. Water management policies and co-operation mechanism is required between Pakistan and India to cope with the challenge of water shortage.

Pakistan’s Water Vulnerability and the Risk of Inter-State Conflict in South Asia

Forman Journal of Economic Studies, 2013

The paper addresses the issue of water scarcity and water vulnerability in Pakistan. It appears that wasteful agricultural practices; the dam centered internal politics and the recent construction of dams by the Indian government on the shared rivers has caused concern amongst certain quarters and created fears in some sections of society in Pakistan that India could redirect some of the water which rightfully belongs to Pakistan under the Indus Basin Treaty. If this indeed happens there could be serious water shortages in parts of downstream Pakistan. A game theoretic analysis of the situation suggests that, given the nature of induced water stress, the law of unlimited territorial sovereignty, if implemented in this case, could result in a Nash equilibrium of bilateral aggression for these nuclear neighbors. Institutional mechanisms therefore have to be put into place for monitoring river flows on both sides of the border and information sharing as stipulated under the Indus Basin Treaty to prevent tensions and develop a cooperative approach to the problem of growing water scarcity related with climate change.

Indus water disputes and India-Pakistan relations

2016

The study reinforces the belief of geo-politicians that competition over and control of, vital resources –- be they oil, strategic materials for warfare, water and sea lanes or minerals – is the main cause of conflict between states and adds substance to that belief by attributing equal significance to the territorial control of freshwater resources as an issue of high-politics in international relations. To highlight theoretical and policy relevance it formulates a theoretical model befittingly explaining linkages between war and peace over vital water resources and explains when the rival riparian compromise on vital concerns and put political issues on the backburner. With this backdrop the Dissertation addresses the question: Is water a cause of conflict or catalyst for peace and establishes linkage between the Indus water resource and the Kashmir dispute. While highlighting role of Indus waters in political thinking, strategic planning and warfare between India and Pakistan the...

Averting Politics of Water: Indus Water Treaty in India-Pakistan Relation

Indus Water Treaty (IWT), is an agreement between Pakistan and India which describes the division of waters and management of drainage between the two countries. On 18 September 2016, the Uri Army Camp at Jammu and Kashmir face a major terrorist attack. After this, it was frequently circulated in the public domain and extensively discussed among intellectuals in the various platforms that whether water can once again serve as a weapon or as a strategic asset to control Pakistan aggressive policy. Some of the individuals have strongly advocated abrogating IWT with Pakistan. Finally, a strategic community of India come with the suggestions to maximizing the utilization of water under the formal procedure of the treaty. The IWT stand as world's unique successful example for conflict resolution. IWT between India-Pakistan is the only agreement that faces various war and short conflict. However, not subject to political mobilization. The treaty survives even in four wars, Siachen conflict, and the reoccurring military standoff. For the academic convenience, the paper has framed in three section such as History of Indus Water Treaty, Post-Uri attack and India-Pakistan Relation and final section propose to safeguard IWT. In other words, it can be said that the summarising the recent developments in terms of IWT between India-Pakistan relation is a primary objective of this paper.

Water Issues and its implications Over India-Pakistan Relations

This paper attempts to find out the water issues between India and Pakistan and its implications over relations of these bilateral states. This study investigates the conflicts over constructing dams or water storages on cross boundary rivers for example the building of Baghliar Dam, Kishanganga Plant and Wullar Barrage by India and also investigates Pakistan's response to these projects, judgment of intercontinental Court of Arbitration, responses of both sides and confidence building measures signed regarding the issue. This study explores that the water issue would prove disastrous if it was not solved in time. For peace in South Asia, solution of this conflict is necessary as early as possible.

India, Pakistan, Water and the Indus Basin: Old Problems New Challenges

The Partition of India divided the largest contiguous gravity flow irrigation system on the planet, creating a new riparian relationship between India and Pakistan over the Indus Basin. Whilst the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 has been successful in defining the rights of the riparians over the rivers of the Indus Basin for the past six decades, new challenges such as climate change and unsustainable groundwater mining are raising water- and food-security concerns that the Treaty was neither intended to nor envisioned to deal with. Emerging regional developments, such as China’s One Belt One Road Project and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor also challenge the fundamental regional security framework. In this paper, the emerging challenges of the Indus Basin are set against these new challenges as well as the past application of the Treaty. The review of the application of the Treaty reveals that while India and Pakistan make rights-based claims on the Treaty, they are willing to accept needs-based decisions, possibly opening new areas of consensus in trans-boundary water management. In examining this ageing Treaty’s limitations against these development, new transboundary water management challenges, and opportunities, emerge.

Water, War and Peace:: Linkages and Scenarios in India-Pakistan Relations

2011

Conflict is a fact of international relations. Its causes range from disputed territories or un-demarcated boundaries associated with vital resources (realpolitik or geopolitics), to political or ideological incompatibilities (ideational politics). Existing or perceived incompatibilities can lead to the formation of hostile actors and aggravate conflict behaviour; conflict behaviour can become armed, and, thus, inter-state relations become militarised. Wars have their genesis in such a state of affairs. Several factors relating to both schools of thought can be identified in the Indo-Pakistan conflict. From a neo-realistic perspective, this thesis examines India and Pakistan’s conflicting interest, bound as they are to the irredentist territory of Kashmir, and argues that conflict over Kashmir is not exclusively ideological but also fundamentally connected to the control of the Indus water resource. There exists to date no significant research focussing predominantly on this aspect ...

Indus Water Treaty: Past Present and Future

2021

Natural resources are fundamental and imperative for the existence and evolution of human civilizations. Water being most important scarce natural resource has become a contentious political issue in the world. South Asia being a less connected and conflict ridden region, Water related conflicts have been a dominant area of concern. At the time of independence, the boundary line between the two newly created independent countries, i.e. Pakistan and India was drawn right across the Indus Basin, leaving Pakistan as the lower riparian. Dispute thus arose between the two countries regarding the utilization of irrigation waters from existing facilities. The negotiations held under the World Bank, culminated in the signing of Indus Waters Treaty in 1960. The paper will examine the historical background of the treaty; the contentious developments which have arose over the years and will also discuss the Kashmir perspective on the treaty. The paper will also evaluate the present disagreeing...