Pakistan no longer receives Ravi water! Construction of India’s Shahpur Kandi Barrage Completed – History EXPLAINED
Ravi water flow from India to Pakistan has been completely stopped as the construction of Shahpur Kandi Barrage has been completed. Read more about the history and timeline…
New Delhi: India and Pakistan were partitioned decades ago in 1947 and have developed deep hostility on diplomatic issues. Amid other matters, the two countries have been in the news when the Ravi water flow to Pakistan was stopped and this has happened because of the Shahpur Kandi barrage in Pathankor, Punjab, India, which had been waiting for completion for 45 years; the completion of this dam has now been completed. Why will Pakistan no longer receive Ravi water, what was the issue between the nations, why was the construction of Shahpur Kandi Barrage incomplete and what is the history and important details behind it – read to know…
Pakistan does not get Ravi water flow from India
As mentioned earlier, due to the Shahpur Kandi barrage in Punjab, India, Pakistan will now no longer receive the water of the River Ravi. According to the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, India has the exclusive right to the water of Ravi and the water is prevented from going to Pakistan, with this dam in Pathankot. The Shahpur Kandi barrage in the Pathankot district of Punjab could not be completed due to an internal dispute between Punjab and J&K and this is why a significant portion of the water from the River Ravi, which belonged to India, has already who went to Pakistan for years. .
What is the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960?
As mentioned earlier, the water was restricted to India as per the 1960 Indus Water Treaty signed between India and Pakistan in the presence and supervision of the World Bank. Under this treaty, India had exclusive rights to the waters of the Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers, while Pakistan had exclusive rights to the waters of the Indus, Jhelum and Chenab rivers.
What happens to the water that flows into Pakistan?
The water from the Shahpur Kandi Barrage, which flowed into Pakistan, will be used for irrigation purposes within the country, especially for the two main districts of Jammu and Kashmir, namely Kathua and Samba. The 32,000 hectares of land will be irrigated using 1,150 cusecs of water. 20 percent of the hydel energy generated by the dam will also be used by Jammu and Kashmir. The water from this dam will help the states of Punjab and Rajasthan, besides J&K.
India Pakistan Issue on River Ravi Water: History and Timeline
Take a look at the timeline or history of the issue between India and Pakistan over the water flow of the River Ravi.
- 1960: The 1960 Indus Waters Treaty was signed under the supervision of the World Bank.
- 1979: An agreement to build the Ranjit Sagar Dam and the downstream Shahpur Kandi Barrage was signed between the governments of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir by Parkash Singh Badal and Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah respectively.
- 1982: The foundation for the project was laid by the then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, and the project was expected to be completed in 1998.
- 2001: Construction of Ranjit Sagar Dam was completed, but not for Shahpur Kandi Dam; this is why water continued to flow from the latter Pakistan.
- 2008: The Shahpur Kandi Barrage was declared a national project but its construction started in the year 2013. However, the next year in 2014, the project was stalled again due to internal issues between Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.
- 2018: Four years later, the inter-state issues were mediated by the Center and an agreement was signed.
- 2024: Construction work started after Centre’s mediation is now over, resulting in complete cessation of Ravi water flow to Pakistan.