Fighting over water is a sign of failure, not strength

M A Hossain, 

Few diplomatic agreements survive the forces of hatred, bullets and bombings. Yet for 65 years, the Indus Waters Treaty has endured. Today, rash decisions risk ending one of South Asia’s few durable successes.

A tragic and deadly shooting in Kashmir on April 22 has provoked India into suspending the treaty. Pakistan, predictably, has escalated in response. Neither side seems to grasp what is at stake.

The Indus system isn’t a mere river network; it’s a life source for both nations. More than 80 per cent of Pakistan’s irrigated agriculture draws water from it. India’s farmers and hydropower projects rely on it too. Playing politics with water is a reckless gamble with millions of lives. Brokered by the World Bank, the treaty gives the eastern rivers to India and the western ones to Pakistan. That balance has kept the peace – at least on the rivers.

In reality, India cannot suddenly block Pakistan’s access to the rivers. India currently lacks the infrastructure to do so. But symbolism matters. By suspending treaty obligations, India damages its image as a responsible rising power. Pakistan’s bluster – that it will respond with “full force” – is even worse. It treats the flow of water not as a shared necessity but as a trigger for war. The region cannot afford such dangerous bravado.

As politicians grandstand, the Himalayan glaciers are melting. Water is becoming more scarce, exacerbating droughts as floods become deadlier. The Indus Waters Treaty must be updated, not suspended, to cope with these realities. Cooperation on climate resilience, new dispute mechanisms and smarter agriculture should be on the agenda instead of acts of retaliation.

If India weaponises water today, China might consider similar measures tomorrow. China, after all, controls the Brahmaputra headwaters. Once the norm of water-sharing treaties collapses, no country will be safe.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s supposed assertion that “blood and water can’t flow together” captures national grief. But the solution is not to punish Pakistani farmers, students and workers who have nothing to do with terrorism. Collective punishment is not justice; it is vengeance.

The Indus system does not belong to any government. It belongs to the millions who till fields, herd cattle and fish its waters. They will suffer first if rivers become a chess piece in political games. Weaponising water is not a show of strength. It is a sign of strategic failure. India and Pakistan must choose peace – not because it is easy, but because it is the only rational choice left.

M.A. Hossain, Dhaka, Bangladesh

This article published at :

1. South China Morning Post, HK: 08 May, 25