ISLAMABAD:
The Ministry of Water Resources has told the National Assembly that India’s continued silence on the Indus Waters Treaty is increasingly attracting international attention.
In a written reply submitted to the lower house, the ministry said India unilaterally suspended the 1960 river-sharing treaty in April 2025 following a militant attack in held Kashmir.
According to the ministry’s response, it said due to non-availability of water in the Chenab River, approximately 1.45 million acres of agricultural land under the Upper Chenab Canal originating from the Marala Headworks will be severely affected.
Similarly, about 3.19 million hectares of agricultural land under the Chenab Canal from Khanki Headworks will face dire consequences.
Currently, the annual water availability per capita 819 cubic meters. In 1951, water availability per capita exceeded 5,000 cubic meters.
In 2030, water availability is expected per inhabitant to fall further to 744 cubic metres. This situation can give rise to serious social and economic challenges.
On Wednesday, the NA session began under the chairmanship of Vice Chairman Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah. The session started with a delay of half an hour.
Instead of responding to the concerns of Pakistan and UN experts over the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), India has chosen to remain silent.
The UN Special Representatives had asked India to respond to its actions regarding the IWT by December 16, 2026. However, even 34 days after the announcement of the deadline, no response has been received from New Delhi.
Five UN special rapporteurs and an independent expert examined India’s military response to the Pahalgam attack on 22 April and the wider legal and humanitarian consequences of its actions in a report prepared on 16 October 2025 but published on 15 December 2025.
The experts warned that any disruption to the implementation of the treaty could have serious consequences for the rights of millions of people in Pakistan who depend on the Indus river system for drinking water, agriculture, food security and livelihoods.
Under the IWT, the three eastern rivers—River Beas, River Ravi, and River Sutlej—were assigned to India, while the three western rivers—River Indus, River Chenab, and River Jhelum—were assigned to Pakistan.
In December 2025, Pakistan formally contacted India over the country’s water aggression and sought an explanation for an unusual reduction in the flows of the Chenab River.
“Pakistan seeks explanation from India over the unusual reduction in river Chenab flows,” the Office of Pakistan Commissioner for Indus Waters said in a statement on December 12.
According to the statement, hydrological records from the first half of December confirmed that an extraordinary reduction in flows was observed on river Chenab, which continued from December 10 to December 16.
During this window, the river flow often decreased and the lowest observed flow was 870 cusecs, which was significantly below the historical 10-year minimum range of approximately 4,018 to 4,406 cusecs for these dates.
“To assess the reason for the extraordinary reduction in the flow of Chenab Main at Marala, a significant reduction in the surface area of Baglihar has been observed in a satellite image of December 8, 2025, which was augmented as per the images of December 13, 2025,” it said.
