Omar says 1960 water treaty with Pakistan is unfair to J&K, accused of ‘parroting’ BJP narrative

Speaking astatine a league of Power ministers of states and Union Territories, Omar said the pact “restricts Jammu and Kashmir from realising its afloat hydel potential”. He said J&K pays a dense terms owed to the pact successful highest wintertime months, erstwhile powerfulness procreation slows down.

The Indus Water Treaty was signed successful 1960 by then-PM Jawaharlal Nehru and the then-Pakistan president Marshal Mohammad Ayub Khan. Under the treaty’s provisions, portion India was granted unrestricted entree to the h2o from the ‘Eastern Rivers’ — the Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi — Pakistan retained rights to the h2o from the ‘Western Rivers,’ including the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab.

Criticising Omar’s comments, Peoples Conference president Sajad Lone said successful a station connected X that disapproval of the Indus Water Treaty was “music to (the) ears of the ruling enactment astatine the Centre”.

“Typical right-wing gibberish. And a precocious elected CM is bending backwards to delight the ruling enactment astatine the Centre,” Lone said.

He besides said that contempt the treaty, determination are capable h2o resources successful J&K that tin beryllium harnessed to make hydropower. “We person not harnessed adjacent 20 per cent of our potential,” helium said.

PDP main and erstwhile CM Mehbooba Mufti said the pact has survived wars and communal strains successful relations betwixt India and Pakistan. She said the J&K authorities should question much powerfulness from the Centre alternatively of trying to strain relations betwixt the 2 countries.

“When Farooq (Abdullah, NC president) was CM, helium handed implicit 7 projects to NHPC. As per recommendations of the Rangarajan committee, we should person 2 powerfulness projects returned to us. We are the lone authorities that produces energy and stays successful the dark. Instead of straining relations betwixt the 2 countries, we should negociate for much powerfulness for us. We should not rake up issues that are already settled betwixt the 2 nations, due to the fact that past we are towing the BJP line,” she said.

Hitting backmost astatine the criticism, Omar’s advisor Nasir Aslam Wani said, “Omar didn’t accidental thing new. We person been saying that we should beryllium compensated for IWT, whether it is done other powerfulness oregon by giving america powerfulness projects, due to the fact that we lone person these hydropower resources.” He said that Omar ne'er asked for the statement to beryllium broken.