BLOG
October 10th, 2012
Via Pakistan’s The Nation, an article reflecting the inflamed water tension between India and Pakistan:
Special Committee of the Parliament on Kashmir on Tuesday, said that water was essential for the economy of Pakistan.
“India is stealing water of the rivers, namely Sindh, Jhelum and Chenab, allocated to Pakistan under the Indus Water Treaty, therefore, Pakistan should be alert and India should be stopped from doing this,“ the Committee observed this which met here at Parliament House to discuss the matter of the construction of dams by India in Held Kashmir.
The meeting was presided over by Maulana Fazlur Rahman, Chairman and was attended, besides the Members of the Kashmir Committee, by Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs & Gilgit Baltistan (KA&GB) Mian Manzoor Ahmed Wattoo, Secretary, Ministry of KA&GB Kamran Qureshi, Additional Secretary Hamid Ali Khan and senior officers of Ministry of KA&GB, Foreign Office and Ministry of Water and Power.
Special Assistant to Prime Minister Kamal Majidullah and his team briefed the Committee about the dams, being built in the Occupied Kashmir. The Committee was told that India had built quiet a few dams and was in the process of building more. The details of the steps taken in this regard by Pakistan were also shared.
After the briefing, the Committee directed that water terrorism by India must be stopped.
All avenues, including the legal ones, should be explored to compel India to stop construction of these dams, because under the Indus Water Treaty, India cannot steal water of our rivers, it said.
The Committee also directed that action taken against the negligent officers in the matter should be intimated to the Committee.
Members of the Kashmir Committee, who were present at the meeting, were Lal Muhammad Khan, Muhammad Tariq Tarar, Muhammad Afzal Sindhu, Syed Samsam Ali Shah Bukhari, Ch. Iftikhar Nazir, Abdul Waseem, Munir Khan Orakzai, Malik Ibrar Ahmed, Naseer Bhutta, Haji Muhammad Adeel, Hadayatullah and Prof Sajid Mir.