Indus Waters Treaty will stay suspended until Pakistan stops ‘support for terrorism': New Delhi
The Indus Waters Treaty will stay suspended until Pakistan 'credibly and irrevocably' stop its 'support for cross-border terrorism', the Union Jal Shakti Ministry has informed the Cabinet secretary, reported PTI on Saturday.
On April 23, a day after the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 persons were killed, India suspended the 1960 agreement on water sharing, citing Islamabad's support for 'sustained cross-border terrorism'.
On Tuesday, Debashree Mukherjee, secretary in the Water Resources Ministry, reiterated in the monthly report to Cabinet Secretary TV Somanathan that the treaty was kept in 'abeyance' in the aftermath of the 'Pakistan-sponsored' attack.
The treaty sought to divide the water of the Indus river and its tributaries equitably between the two countries. Under the treaty, water from three eastern rivers – Beas, Ravi and Sutlej – were allocated to India and from the three western rivers – Chenab, Indus and Jhelum – to Pakistan.
The treaty permitted both countries to use the other's rivers for certain purposes, such as small hydroelectric projects that require little or no water storage. It allowed for the harnessing of the Chenab, which is one of the western rivers in the Indus Water system, for power generation.
Pakistan had earlier said that India's suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty was an 'act of war' and warned that it would respond with 'full force across the complete spectrum of national power'.
Islamabad called New Delhi's actions 'unilateral, unjust, politically motivated, extremely irresponsible and devoid of legal merit', according to a statement of Pakistan's National Security Committee published by Dawn.
On May 10, India and Pakistan reached an 'understanding' to halt firing following a four-day conflict.
Tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad had escalated on May 7 when the Indian military carried out strikes – codenamed Operation Sindoor – on what it claimed were terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
The strikes were in response to the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam.
The Pakistan Army retaliated to Indian strikes by repeatedly shelling Indian villages along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir. At least 22 Indian civilians and seven defence personnel were killed.
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NDTV
28 minutes ago
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"Operation Sindoor Was Brilliantly Chosen Name": Shashi Tharoor In US
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Sindoor, in case some Americans obviously don't know about this, is a vermilion mark that is applied to the centre of the forehead of married women in the Hindu tradition. It's widely practised. Some non-Hindus do it too, but more for decorative purposes, but strictly speaking, the Sindoor is applied at the time of the marriage ceremony and is worn every day thereafter by married women. So, we were very conscious of these brutal terrorists who, by the way, shot men in front of their wives and children but spared the women and when one wife screamed out, Kill me too, she was told, no, you go back and tell them what we've done." "That was why the women were spared horrendous, horrendous act. That sindoor had essentially been wiped off the foreheads of 26 Indian women, 26 I was gonna say Hindu women, but one of them actually was a Christian, but the sindoor had been wiped off the rest by these terrorist actions, and so we wanted first of all, to avenge that act of wiping off the sindoor. 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