‘Water War’ rages as India-Pakistan tensions reach boiling point
- India pushes forward the Shahpur Kandi dam, originally envisioned in the 1970s and revived after a 2018 agreement, to capture unused Ravi River flows for its farms and power grids (per RS, Tufts).
- Pakistan faces reduced downstream water, challenging the long‑standing water‑sharing regime set by the Indus Waters Treaty (per RS, Stimson Center).
- Experts like Hassaan Khan (Tufts) warn the dam’s timing signals a breakdown of 60‑year water‑politics norms, while Christopher Clary (Stimson) sees it as a symptom of already‑bad bilateral relations, not a cause.
- Regional stability could be jeopardized as water scarcity intensifies, with the dam potentially becoming a geopolitical lever in the broader India‑Pakistan rivalry (per Global Food and Water Security perspective).
India’s long‑delayed Shahpur Kandi dam, slated for completion March 2024, will divert surplus Ravi River water that once flowed into Pakistan, a move that experts say reflects eroding norms of the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty amid soaring New Delhi‑Islamabad tensions.
