PM Modi on Indus Waters Treaty: ‘India’s Water Used to Flow Out, Will Now Be Utilized for Our Farmers’

PM Modi on Indus Waters Treaty: In a bold shift in India's water diplomacy, PM Modi proclaimed, in his address at ABP Network's India@2047 Summit on Tuesday, that water that justly belongs to India will be used for India.

“A discussion is going on in media over water issue (referring to Indus-Water Treaty)… ‘Bharat ke haq ka paani, Bharat ke haq mein bahega," he said.

"For decades, the water of our rivers has been a subject of tension and conflict, but our government, in collaboration with the state governments, has launched a massive campaign to link the rivers. The Ken-Betwa Link Project and the Parvati-Kalisindh Chambal Link Project will benefit millions of farmers," he added, in a related note.

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This comes shortly after India halted flow of water to Pakistan following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that claimed the lives of 25 tourists and one local.

New Delhi has partially shut the Baglihar and Salal dams on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir, obliquely restricting water flow to Pakistan as part of its strategy in the wake of the attack.

In response, on Monday, the Indus River System Authority advisory committee of Pakistan registered its "deep concern" over the abrupt decline in inflows at Marala from River Chenab, attributing the decline to India's reduction in released water.

IRSA argued that the reduction of water available could lead to a 21% reduced supply during the early Kharif season, while committee members convened to finalize the Anticipated Water Availability Criteria for the remaining Kharif period from May to September 2025.

"IAC declared an overall shortage of 21 per cent for the remaining Early Kharif Season in case supplies in River Chenab remains normal. However, the situation would be monitored daily and if the decrease continues in "River Chenab", the shortages would be revisited accordingly. The Late Kharif Shortages are expected to be 7 per cent," it added.

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Meanwhile, just shortly after the Treaty was suspended, Islamabad threatened to declare war with its "full force and might" if water flow was diverted or shut off from it by India. In the midst of the rising tensions stemming from the Pahalgam attack, PM Modi had the Indian Armed forces were granted full liberty to choose a military response for Pakistan.

The suspension of the IWT was just one of many diplomatic mechanisms PM Modi's government rolled out in the wake of the most deadly terror attack India has seen since the 2019 Pulwama attack. Other diplomatic measures included reducing Pakistan's diplomatic presence in India, canceling all visas for Pakistanis, and shutting down the Wagah-Attari border in Amritsar.

Tensions between the two rival nuclear-armed nations, who have historically had territorial disputes, reached a fever pitch after the attack with global powers (US, EU, China, and Russia) calling for both parties to de-escalate tensions through dialogue and diplomacy.

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