India has control over water flowing in the eastern rivers-- Beas, Ravi and Sutlej. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said that the government has decided to stop "our share of water that used to flow to Pakistan", a week after 40 CRPF soldiers were killed in a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama. The minister added that the government would divert water from eastern rivers to Jammu and Kashmir. In his tweet, Mr Gadkari talked about the UJH project to store India's share of water for use in Jammu and Kashmir. The balance water will flow from second Ravi-Beas Link to provide water to other basin states, he said. The sharing of water of the six rivers-- Indus, Chenab, Jhelum, Beas, Ravi and Sutlej-- between India and Pakistan is governed by a treaty the two countries signed in 1960. The deal was brokered by the World Bank after nine years of negotiation. Under the treaty, India has control over water flowing in the eastern rivers-- Beas, Ravi and Sutlej. Pakistan has control over the western rivers-- Indus, Chenab and Jhelum. Of the total 168 million acre-feet, India's share of water from the three allotted rivers is 33 million acre-feet, which constitutes nearly 20 per cent. India uses nearly 93-94 per cent of its share under the Indus Waters Treaty. The rest of the water remains unutilised and goes to Pakistan. As per the treaty, the water commissioners of Pakistan and India are required to meet twice a year and arrange technical visits to projects' sites and critical river head works. Both the sides share details of the water flow and the quantum of water being used under the treaty. The treaty sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries regarding their use of the rivers. After the Uri attack in 2016, India suspended talks of Indus water commission and fast-tracked water projects to arrest the unutilised water. The three projects include the Shahpur-Kandi dam project, a second Sutlej-Beas link in Punjab and the UJH Dam project in Jammu and Kashmir. Mr Gadkari today tweeted about the projects. "The construction of dam has started at Shahpur- Kandi on Ravi river. Moreover, UJH project will store our share of water for use in J&K and the balance water will flow from 2nd Ravi-BEAS Link to provide water to other basin states," he wrote today.<doc-sep>The Indian government's decision will not impact Pakistan's share of water under the Indus Water Treaty between the two nations. (File photo: Reuters) Pakistan has termed India's decision of fully utilising its share of unused water from rivers Ravi, Beas and Sutlej that has been flowing into Pakistan a mere "bullying attempt". Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said the Centre has decided to stop India's share of water which used to flow to Pakistan. "We will divert water from Eastern rivers and supply it to our people in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab," he added. To this end, Sheraz Memon, Deputy for Indus Water Commission, said, "India does not have the capability to stop or divert our water. The decision is nothing more than a bullying attempt." The developments come in the aftermath of the dastardly Pulwama terror attack that left at least 40 CRPF personnel dead. A suicide bomber of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad drove an explosive-filled car into a CRPF convoy in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama. Pakistan, however, maintains it was not involved in the attack. The Indian government's decision will not impact Pakistan's share of water under the Indus Water Treaty between the two nations. For the unversed, the plan has been in place since 2016, and the three dam projects, announced then, have recently been inaugurated. A dam is being built on the Ravi river at Shahpur-Kandi. "Moreover, UJH project will store our share of water for use in J&K and the balance water will flow from 2nd Ravi-BEAS Link to provide water to other basin states," Gadkari added, in another tweet. Under the Indus Water Treaty, signed by India and Pakistan in 1960, New Delhi has control over the waters of Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers and Islamabad has control over the waters from Jhelum, Chenab and Indus.<doc-sep>Minister for Road Transport and Water Resources Nitin Gadkari says the water from “eastern rivers” will be diverted to Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir. India will not allow its share of water from the Indus network of rivers to flow into Pakistan, Minister for Road Transport and Water Resources Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday. Mr. Gadkari reiterated India’s position that has been under consideration, saying the water from the “eastern rivers” that fell in the Indian share would be diverted to Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir. As per the Indus Waters Treaty, signed between India and Pakistan in 1960, India has full rights to utilise the waters of the Ravi, the Beas and the Satluj rivers, while the waters of the Indus, the Chenab and the Jhelum belongs to Pakistan. “Under the leadership of Honourable PM Narendra Modi, our Government has decided to stop our share of water which used to flow to Pakistan. We will divert water from Eastern rivers and supply it to our people in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab,” Mr. Gadkari tweeted. Dam construction Mr. Gadkari announced that the construction of a dam had started at Shahpur-Kanti on the Ravi and the Ujh multi-purpose project would store the Indian share of the water for use in Jammu and Kashmir and the balance water would flow from second the Ravi-Beas link to provide water to other basin States. These schemes had been declared national projects. Also Read 10 things to know about Indus Water Treaty On December 6, 2018, the Union Cabinet approved the implementation of the Shahpur-Kanti Dam Project with the allocation of ₹485.38 crore for five years. The project aims to minimise the wastage of water that now goes to Pakistan through the Madhopur Headworks downstream. The Ujh Project in Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir, aims to irrigate about 30,000 hectares and produce 300 MW electricity from the waters of the Ujh, a tributary of the Ravi.<doc-sep>A day after threatening to choke Pakistan's water supply, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said the Centre was planning to build projects on three rivers flowing into the belligerent neighbour, to divert water towards Yamuna. "Our government has decided to stop our share of water which used to flow to Pakistan. We will divert water from eastern rivers and supply it to our people in Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab," ANI quoted Gadkari as saying. Under the Indus Waters Treaty, India shares water of the Beas and Sutlej rivers with Pakistan. Gadkari later took to Twitter to confirm the upcoming projects that would help divert water towards Yamuna. Under the leadership of Hon'ble PM Sri @narendramodi ji, Our Govt. has decided to stop our share of water which used to flow to Pakistan. We will divert water from Eastern rivers and supply it to our people in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab. - Nitin Gadkari (@nitin_gadkari) February 21, 2019 At a public meeting in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, Gadkari had said that the water from three rivers entering Pakistan would be diverted towards river Yamuna, a warning which came in the wake of recent terror attack in Pulwama that has left the nation fuming. He further said that the central government is working on a project to connect the three rivers to further explore the possibilities of transportation in these water channels. "Three of our rivers have been flowing into Pakistan. So water which we rightfully owned was going into Pakistan. Now we are planning to create a project and divert the waters of these three rivers to the Yamuna. So you can understand that there will be enough water in the Yamuna," Gadkari said while inaugurating several water projects in Uttar Pradesh. "Construction of dam has started at Shahpur-Kandi on Ravi river. Ujh project will store our share of water for use in Jammu and Kashmir and balance water will flow from second Ravi-Beas link to provide water to other basin states. Above projects are declared as national projects," Gadkari said as per ANI report. On February 14, a convoy of CRPF jawans was attacked by a suicide bomber who rammed an explosive-laden vehicle. Militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed had claimed responsibility for the attack. After the Pulwama attack, not only has India tried to stifle Pakistan by courting global support to declare it a terror monger, but the Modi government has also made efforts to cripple its economy by increasing duties on essential products. Also Read: 7th Pay commission: Bihar university teachers and staff to get a salary hike soon Edited by Chitranjan Kumar<doc-sep>
Representational Image In another bold move after the Pulwama attack, the government has decided to stop India's share of water flowing to Pakistan. The water from Eastern rivers will now be diverted for supply to people in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab. "Under the leadership of Hon'ble PM Sri @narendramodi ji, Our Govt. has decided to stop our share of water which used to flow to Pakistan. We will divert water from Eastern rivers and supply it to our people in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab," Union Minister Nitin Gadkari tweeted on Thursday. "The construction of dam has started at Shahpur- Kandi on Ravi river. Moreover, UJH project will store our share of water for use in J&K and the balance water will flow from 2nd Ravi-BEAS Link to provide water to other basin states. All the above Projects are declared as the National projects," he added. An official later clarified that it was not a "new decision" and that the Water Resources minister was "simply reiterating" what he has always said. The reiteration to stop the flow of Indus water to Pakistan comes amid mounting Indo-Pak tension over the Pulwama terror strike that has triggered demands for action against the neighbouring country. India has already decided to revoke the Most Favoured Nation status to Pakistan and mounted a diplomatic offensive to isolate it in the international community. "Regarding the tweet (by Gadkari) about Indus treaty, this is not a new decision. Mantriji is simply reiterating what he has always said. He is talking about diverting India's share of Indus water which was going to Pakistan - and he has always been saying this," Information Officer in-charge of Water Resources Ministry Neeta Prasad said when asked about the issue. There were demands to stop flow of India's share of Indus water to Pakistan after the Uri terror attack in 2016. Officials said the actual implementation of the decision may take up to six years as dams as high as 100 metres will have to be built to stop flow of water. Under the Indus Water Treaty signed in 1960, the waters of the western rivers -- the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab -- was given to Pakistan and those of the eastern rivers -- the Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej -- to India. India's share of water from Ravi, Beas and Sutlej rivers came to 33 million acres feet (MAF). While about 95 per cent of the water was being used in the country after the construction of three main dams across the rivers, close to 5 per cent water or 1.6 MAF would flow to Pakistan. To gain access to this water, India is now building more dams which will be completed in six years, officials said. FULL VIDEO: Latest India News