New Delhi: Amid rising tensions following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack and India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), a major irrigation project has emerged as a key pillar of the government’s new development strategy in Jammu and Kashmir.
The plan is to double the length of the historic Ranbir Canal from 60 km to 120 km, aiming not just to boost irrigation in the agrarian belt of Jammu, but also to reassert sovereign control over the waters of the Chenab, long regulated under the India-Pakistan water-sharing pact.
A senior official of the irrigation and flood control department told ETV Bharat that water is flowing in the canal in its full capacity of 1400 cusec, but there are ways through which its capacity can be increased, if the government agrees.
“There is land available around the canal, using which its capacity can be increased, but it will disturb the farming community on a large scale,” the official said on the condition of anonymity. “The government will have to devise a strategy by either constructing a new canal alongside the existing one or using bigger pipes to divert the water so that the functioning of the Ranbir canal doesn't get disturbed.”
India’s decision to keep the IWT in abeyance in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack last month should not come as a surprise to Pakistan.
In fact, last year itself, India had put Pakistan on notice stating that there would be no further talks between the two sides until and unless the terms and conditions of the IWT are renegotiated, given the fundamental changes in the geopolitical and environmental changes since the Treaty was signed in 1960. Weeks after the ultimatum, Pakistan responded in September 2024, stating that it was willing to renegotiate the IWT.
“The Indus Waters Treaty is an important treaty that has served both Pakistan and India well over the last several decades,” then Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch had said during a media briefing in Islamabad. “We believe it is the gold standard of bilateral treaties on water sharing, and Pakistan is fully committed to its implementation. We expect India to also remain committed to the treaty.”
However, things changed dramatically following the Pakistan-backed terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22 that claimed 26 innocent lives, including 25 tourists.
On April 23, a day after the attack, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) decided to take five diplomatic measures against Pakistan, one of which included keeping the IWT in abeyance.
The Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 will be held in abeyance with immediate effect, until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism,” Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said during a media briefing following a meeting of the CCS.
Pakistan had countered, saying that keeping the IWT in abeyance will be treated as “an act of war” by India.
Then, on the intervening night of May 6-7, India launched Operation Sindoor targeting terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. A ceasefire was reached on May 10 after Pakistan’s Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) called up his Indian counterpart over the hotline, pleading for peace. This resulted in a ceasefire.
However, India remained steadfast in its resolution of keeping the IWT in abeyance. “India’s stand is very clear… Terror and talks cannot go together… Terror and trade cannot go together… Water and blood cannot flow together,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi thundered during a nationally televised address on May 12.
The next day, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, during a regular media briefing, reiterated India’s position, stating that the IWT will be kept in abeyance “until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism”.
At the same time, he added: “Please also note that climate change and demographic shifts and technological changes have created new realities on the ground as well.”
Now, reports suggest that Syed Ali Murtaza, Secretary of Pakistan’s Ministry of Water Resources, has written a letter to Debashree Mukherjee, Secretary of India’s Jal Shakti Ministry, to reconsider the decision taking into account the fact the dependence of people in Pakistan on the water regulated by the IWT. India, on its part, rejected Pakistan’s claim in the letter that keeping the IWT in abeyance is “illegal”.
Can India legally keep the IWT in abeyance? To understand this, one has to go into the details of the IWT. The Indus River System, one of the largest river systems in the world, flows through China, India, and Pakistan. It consists of six rivers: the Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej.
Following the Partition of British India in 1947, the two new nations, India and Pakistan, found themselves at odds over the control and usage of these rivers, as most of the rivers originated in India but flowed downstream into Pakistan. In 1948, India briefly suspended water flow to Pakistan from the Eastern rivers, intensifying the need for a formal agreement.
To avoid conflict and ensure equitable distribution, the World Bank stepped in to mediate. After nearly a decade of negotiations, the IWT was signed on September 19, 1960, by then Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, then President of Pakistan Ayub Khan and then President of the World Bank Eugene R Black as the broker.
The Treaty gives control over the waters of the three Eastern rivers - the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej - to India, while control over the waters of the three Western rivers - the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum - is with Pakistan. The Treaty establishes a cooperative mechanism for exchanging information between the two countries regarding the use of the western rivers allocated to Pakistan and the eastern rivers allocated to India.
The preamble of the Treaty recognises the rights and obligations of each country in the optimum use of water from the Indus system in a spirit of goodwill, friendship and cooperation. The Treaty allows India to use the western river waters for limited irrigation use and unlimited non-consumptive use such as power generation, navigation, floating of property, and fish culture.
Under the Treaty, a Permanent Indus Commission was established. The Commission, which has a commissioner from each country, oversees the cooperative mechanism and ensures that the two countries meet annually (alternately in India and Pakistan) to discuss myriad issues emerging from the treaty.
The Treaty has largely been upheld for more than six decades, surviving several wars and periods of high tension between India and Pakistan. However, in recent years, multiple disputes over water usage, dam construction, and Treaty implementation have brought it into the spotlight once again.
Now, India’s decision to extend the length of the Ranbir Canal in Jammu cannot be seen as a violation of the IWT, as New Delhi has decided to keep the Treaty in abeyance.
The Ranbir Canal is one of the oldest and most important irrigation projects in the Jammu region of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Sourced from the Chenab River, the canal plays a vital role in irrigating the fertile plains of Jammu, significantly contributing to the region's agrarian economy. It was constructed during the reign of Maharaja Ranbir Singh (1856–1885), the ruler of the erstwhile princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. It was named in his honour and reflects the early efforts at organised irrigation infrastructure in the region. The canal was engineered under the guidance of British irrigation experts, following the traditional models of canal systems in northern India, particularly those in Punjab.
According to Uttam Kumar Sinha, Senior Fellow at the Manohar Parrikar Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses and a leading commentator on transboundary water issues, India has every right to extend the Ranbir Canal based on the provisions of the IWT.
India is allowed to irrigate up to approximately 13.4 lakh acres in the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh using waters from the western rivers. However, India has developed irrigation infrastructure for only about 6.42 lakh acres, indicating significant untapped potential.
“Under the IWT, 3.6 million acres of water from the western rivers can be stored by India,” Sinha explained. “Apart from utilising the waters from these rivers for irrigation purposes, India can also build as many hydroelectric projects on such rivers as it wants.”
He said that, with India keeping the IWT in abeyance, New Delhi can go ahead with its projects on the Indus River system without informing Pakistan.
The suspension of the Treaty grants India the ability to undertake infrastructural projects and maintenance activities, such as reservoir flushing, without prior notification to Pakistan, as previously required. This operational flexibility could accelerate India’s hydroelectric initiatives and flood control measures, as well as the development of irrigation systems.
Sinha said that if the Ranbir Canal is extended, there will be a significant diversion of water from the Chenab River, affecting Pakistan’s agrarian sector.
The Ranbir Canal has undergone several phases of renovation and modernisation, particularly under central schemes like the Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP) and PMKSY (Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana). These efforts have focused on desilting and lining of canal beds, modernisation of head regulators, automation of water gates, and reduction of water losses and improved equitable distribution.
To sum up, the Ranbir Canal is a testament to early hydraulic engineering in the Himalayan foothills and continues to be a backbone of Jammu’s agricultural economy. Its historical legacy, technical design, and socio-economic importance make it one of the most critical irrigation assets in Jammu and Kashmir. With continued modernisation and environmental management, it can serve the region for decades to come.
Read more: Chenab Water Diversion: Increasing Ranbir Canal's Capacity Could Be The Solution
