Suspension of Indus Waters Treaty by India is the most drastic decision taken by India in its first soft salvo fired at Pakistan. Pakistan committed a heinous crime when its trained terrorists killed 25 unarmed, innocent and unprotected tourists just a couple of kilometres from Pahalgam. Pahalgam, in fact Jammu and Kashmir, hasn’t witnessed such carnage for a long, long time.
Brig SK Chatterji (Retd), Editor of BharatShakti.in discusses the issue with Maj Gen AK Chaturvedi (Retd), a renowned water management specialist, who is also the Vice Chairman of the Lucknow-based think tank STRIVE.
Water can be weaponised by India in its confrontation with Pakistan in a most effective manner. Pakistan is already a water starved nation, and there is huge dissatisfaction in down stream provinces like Sindh and Balochistan. Water shortage will create wider ruptures in the Punjabi dominated Pakistan.
Soft options are the best weapons available. Ukraine and Gaza have shown how hard options lead to protracted grinding matches that destroy the economy and infrastructure in a nation, but barely produce a victor.
