Pakistan has asked India to abandon Wullar barrage project as it is not consistent to the Indus Basin Treaty reached between Pakistan and India in 1960.
Talking to APP on the conclusion of the first day Pak-India talks on Wullar barrage under composite dialogue here on Thursday, Muhammad Ismail Qureshi, Secretary Ministry of Water and Power said during the talks both sides presented their respective positions on this issue.
Pakistan had taken the stand that it was a natural lake and man-made storage could not be built on it as it would interfere with the flow of Jhelum River which was allocated to Pakistan under the Treaty. India should abandon this project as it violates the Treaty.
Legal and technical aspects of the issue also came under discussion, he said. The structure proposed by India is that of a barrage and will convert the natural lake into a man-made storage, he said. The Secretary said, previously, India has presented the project as a regulating structure. Now it has taken the position that it is a navigational lock.
The Indian project will change the availability and flow of water prejudicing Pakistan's uses. Pakistan's uses cannot be sub-ordinated to pattern and quantum of flow for Indias navigational uses. The proposed project is a barrage, as man-made obstruction to the flow of water, constitutes interference with the flow and would cause change in the volume of the daily flow against the provisions of the Treaty.
Project violates Indus Waters Treaty 1960 as no storage is allowed to India on the main stem of river Jhelum. The proposed project, which may serve a stretch of only 20 miles, is not economically viable. Alternatives and more efficient measures of transportation are available to India in this area.
The main issue is not whether water would be impounded or not. Instead, it is a barrage and it exceeds the storage allowed incidental to a barrage. In view of specific provisions of the Treaty, the proposed project is in violation of the Treaty and should not be implemented.
A joint statement is likely to be issued on Friday after the conclusion of the talks. A 9-member delegation led by the Secretary Water and Power participated in the talks.
Syed Jamaat Ali Shah, Pakistan Commissioner for Indus Water and Pakistan High Commissioner Shahid Malik also attended the meeting. Indian side was represented at the talks by its Secretary Water resources Gauri Chatterjee. The Pakistan Secretary will call on Indian Union Minister for Water resources Saifuddin Soz on Friday.
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