UN World Water Day event , 20 Mar : India has reiterated that the Indus Waters Treaty will remain in abeyance until Pakistan, described as the ‘global epicentre of terror’, mends its ways.
Speaking at an event at the United Nations to mark World Water Day, India’s Permanent Representative P Harish stressed that responsibility must be mutual. He asserted that Pakistan must uphold the sanctity of human life before raising concerns about treaties and urged it to unconditionally abandon terrorism as an instrument of state policy.
P Harish added that India has consistently acted as a responsible upper riparian state.
Responding to Pakistan raising the treaty issue at the event, Harish said India had signed the agreement in good faith and with a spirit of goodwill. He further noted that Pakistan undermined this spirit through wars and sustained terror attacks, which claimed thousands of innocent lives in India.
India placed the treaty in abeyance following the Pahalgam terrorist attack last year, carried out by The Resistance Front, a group linked to Pakistan-backed Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Harish said India’s patience and restraint failed to bring change, compelling the decision to suspend the treaty until Pakistan ends all forms of terrorism in a credible and irreversible manner.
He also pointed to the need for revisiting the treaty in light of significant technological, demographic, and ecological changes over the past 65 years, noting that Pakistan has refused to engage in discussions on necessary modifications.
Highlighting broader priorities, P Harish reaffirmed India’s commitment to universal water access under the global goals, citing the success of the Jal Jeevan Mission and stressing community participation and global cooperation.
