{"id":1380,"date":"2025-11-01T04:31:05","date_gmt":"2025-11-01T04:31:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/?p=1380"},"modified":"2025-11-01T04:31:05","modified_gmt":"2025-11-01T04:31:05","slug":"pakistan-faces-alarming-water-shortage-as-india-suspends-indus-treaty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2025\/11\/01\/pakistan-faces-alarming-water-shortage-as-india-suspends-indus-treaty\/","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan Faces Alarming Water Shortage as India Suspends Indus Treaty"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"9fece8afa224fd09e54b043d0febfb58\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:10px 0 10px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- NR ATF -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8898941184964366\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"4839033563\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<h2 data-start=\"183\" data-end=\"599\"><em>Pakistan\u2019s agriculture, which heavily depends on the Indus basin, is facing an escalating water crisis as India gains strategic leverage over river management. <\/em><\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"183\" data-end=\"599\">According to the <em data-start=\"360\" data-end=\"391\">Ecological Threat Report 2025<\/em> by the Sydney-based <strong>Institute for Economics and Peace<\/strong> (IEP), even minor changes in India\u2019s dam operations could cause <a href=\"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2025\/08\/13\/pakistan-warns-india-over-indus-waters-treaty-suspension\/\">large-scale water shortages across Pakistan<\/a>, threatening food security and livelihoods.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"601\" data-end=\"669\">India\u2019s Dam Control Raises Alarm for Pakistan\u2019s Water Security<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"671\" data-end=\"1104\">The IEP report highlights that <em>nearly 80% of Pakistan\u2019s agriculture depends on the Indus basin<\/em>. With India now holding operational control over several key dams, even small alterations in water flow &#8211; especially during summer or dry months can severely affect Pakistan\u2019s irrigated plains. Pakistan\u2019s <em>current storage infrastructure can retain only about 30 days\u2019 worth of Indus River flow<\/em>, leaving it highly vulnerable to disruptions.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1106\" data-end=\"1574\">This warning comes in the wake of <strong><em>India\u2019s decision to <a href=\"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2025\/08\/13\/pakistan-warns-india-over-indus-waters-treaty-suspension\/\">suspend the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) of 1960<\/a><\/em><\/strong> after the Pahalgam terror attack in April, which was allegedly carried out by Pakistan-based terrorists. The move effectively freed India from its decades-long water-sharing obligations. Under the IWT, India was responsible for controlling the eastern rivers\u2014Beas, Ravi, and Sutlej\u2014while allowing Pakistan to utilize the western rivers\u2014Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"1576\" data-end=\"1627\">Dam Operations Give India Strategic Advantage<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1629\" data-end=\"2007\">While India cannot completely block or divert the Indus flow due to the technical design of its <em data-start=\"1725\" data-end=\"1743\">run-of-the-river<\/em> projects, it still maintains the ability to influence downstream water availability by adjusting dam gate operations. The IEP report emphasized that these small, yet crucial changes can significantly affect Pakistan\u2019s water flow at critical agricultural periods.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2009\" data-end=\"2291\">In May, India conducted <strong data-start=\"2033\" data-end=\"2055\">reservoir flushing<\/strong> at the Salal and Baglihar dams on the Chenab River without a prior notice to <a href=\"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2025\/08\/13\/pakistan-warns-india-over-indus-waters-treaty-suspension\/\">Pakistan<\/a>. The move triggered flood-like conditions downstream, underscoring India\u2019s enhanced strategic control over river management since the IWT suspension.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"2293\" data-end=\"2345\">Afghanistan\u2019s Dam Plans Add to Pakistan\u2019s Woes<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"2347\" data-end=\"2744\">Pakistan\u2019s water challenges are further compounded by Afghanistan\u2019s recent announcement to construct a dam on the Kunar River, which flows into <a href=\"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2025\/09\/27\/india-vs-pakistan-petal-gahlot-rebuts-shehbaz-sharifs-narrative\/\">Pakistan<\/a>. The Taliban\u2019s Supreme Leader has prioritized this project, threatening to further restrict Pakistan\u2019s access to vital cross-border water resources. This move follows heightened tensions and recent armed clashes between the two neighbors.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"2746\" data-end=\"2806\">Limited Water Storage Capacity Leaves Pakistan Exposed<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"2808\" data-end=\"3116\">According to the IEP report, <a href=\"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2025\/09\/27\/india-vs-pakistan-petal-gahlot-rebuts-shehbaz-sharifs-narrative\/\">Pakistan\u2019s limited dam storage capacity<\/a> leaves it ill-equipped to handle even temporary water disruptions. \u201cIf India were to reduce Indus flows during critical periods, Pakistan\u2019s plains would experience devastating shortages\u2014particularly during dry seasons,\u201d the report warns.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"3118\" data-end=\"3163\">Strategic and Geopolitical Implications<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"3165\" data-end=\"3499\">The IEP also noted that India\u2019s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty could have broader geopolitical consequences. The move coincided with <a href=\"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2025\/09\/26\/trump-meets-shehbaz-sharif-asim-munir-us-pakistan-ties-warm\/\">Pakistan\u2019s <strong data-start=\"3316\" data-end=\"3350\">defence pact with Saudi Arabia<\/strong><\/a>, signaling shifting regional alliances. Riyadh is reportedly expected to support Islamabad amid growing water and security tensions in South Asia.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3523\" data-end=\"3973\">With its water reserves dwindling and dependence on India\u2019s upstream operations increasing, Pakistan\u2019s agricultural future stands on precarious ground. The IEP\u2019s findings underline an urgent need for Islamabad to invest in larger water storage projects, negotiate diplomatic channels, and strengthen climate resilience measures. Without decisive action, Pakistan\u2019s food security and rural economy could face irreversible damage in the coming years.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pakistan\u2019s agriculture, which heavily depends on the Indus basin, is facing an escalating water crisis as India gains strategic leverage over river management. According to&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":1381,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[299],"tags":[746,750,744,748,745,743,751,747,749,742,752,753],"class_list":["post-1380","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-iep-ecological-threat-report-2025","tag-india-dam-operations","tag-india-pakistan-water-dispute","tag-indus-basin","tag-indus-river-flow","tag-indus-waters-treaty-suspension","tag-kunar-river-dam","tag-pakistan-agriculture","tag-pakistan-dam-capacity","tag-pakistan-water-crisis","tag-pakistan-water-security","tag-south-asia-water-tensions","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1380","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1380"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1380\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1382,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1380\/revisions\/1382"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1381"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1380"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1380"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1380"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}