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Context: Pakistan has objected to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Kashmir and laying of foundation stones for the construction of the Rattle and Kwar hydroelectric projects on the Chenab river, which it claimed was a “direct contravention” of the Indus Waters Treaty.

• Prime Minister visited Jammu and Kashmir for the first time for a public engagement since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

Rattle and Kwar hydroelectric projects:

• Rattle is a 850 MW facility to be constructed on the Chenab river in Kishtwar at a cost of around Rs 5,300 crore.
• It is a run-of-the-river hydroelectric power station currently under construction on the Chenab River, downstream of the village near Drabshalla in Kishtwar district of the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
• In August 2017, the World Bank allowed India to construct the dam.
• It happened after Pakistan alleged that the construction of the dam was not in line with the Indus Water Treaty.
• Kwar is a 540 MW hydroelectric project to be built on the same river at a cost of over Rs 4,500 crore.
• Construction of Rattle hydroelectric plant has been disputed by Pakistan, and considers it as a direct contravention of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) of 1960.

Indus Water Treaty:

• It is a water-distribution treaty between India and Pakistan, brokered by the World Bank, to use the water available in the Indus River and its tributaries.
• It gives control over the waters of the three "eastern rivers" — the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej with a mean annual flow of 33 million acre-feet (MAF) — to India, while control over the waters of the three "western rivers" — the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum with a mean annual flow of 80 MAF — to Pakistan.
• India was allocated about 16% of the total water carried by the Indus system while Pakistan was allocated the remainder.
• The treaty allows India to use the western river waters for limited irrigation use and unlimited non-consumptive use for such applications as power generation, navigation, floating of property, fish culture, etc.
• It lays down detailed regulations for India in building projects over the western rivers.
• Under the provisions of Article VIII(5) of the Indus Waters Treaty, the Permanent Indus Commission is required to meet regularly at least once a year, alternately in India and Pakistan.
• According to the treaty, India has been given the right to generate hydroelectricity through run-of-the-river projects on the western rivers subject to specific criteria for design and operation.
• It also gives the right to Pakistan to raise objections to designs of Indian hydroelectric projects on the western rivers.

Permanent Indus Commission:

• It is a bilateral commission consisting of officials from India and Pakistan, created to implement and manage the goals and objectives and outlines of the Indus Waters Treaty.

Renegotiation of treaty:

• The parliamentary standing committee urged the government of India to initiate the process for renegotiating the treaty with Pakistan.
• Reasons: Present-day pressing issues such as climate change, global warming and environmental impact assessment etc. were not taken into account by the treaty. There is very little in the treaty for the best possible use of the water resources of the river system
• Renegotiation of IWT is possible only when both the parties, India and Pakistan, agree to do so. Afghanistan and China being the co-riparian’s of Indus basin, also have a stake in the basin.

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/pakistan-objects-to-pm-narendra-modis-visit-to-kashmir-7886098/

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