New Delhi, Jul 21 : The Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) will not resume in its present form unless Pakistan permanently ends cross-border terrorism against India, government sources said on Monday, asserting that any future revival of the decades-old water-sharing pact would require a renegotiated framework.
The sources said Pakistan has shown no credible signs of dismantling its terror infrastructure or ending support for cross-border terrorism, which India considers a prerequisite for restoring cooperation under the 1960 treaty.
“It would be accurate to say that the IWT in its present form will not function again. If the river water-sharing provisions are to be reactivated, they will have to be implemented in a different format, and only if Pakistan abandons terrorism,” a government source said.
India suspended the treaty following the Pahalgam terror attack in April last year, which claimed 26 civilian lives. The attack was attributed to The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). India later launched Operation Sindoor, targeting terrorist infrastructure across the border.
Government sources accused Pakistan of spreading a false narrative that India’s suspension of the treaty has led to water shortages. They said Pakistan’s water crisis stems largely from inadequate storage facilities, distribution losses and internal disputes over water sharing among its provinces.
While India is not actively considering withdrawing from the treaty, the sources maintained that, as a sovereign nation, it reserves the right to terminate any agreement that no longer serves its national interests.
The officials also criticised Pakistan for repeatedly obstructing India’s hydropower projects on the western rivers by raising objections and pursuing multiple dispute-resolution mechanisms, including simultaneous proceedings before a Neutral Expert and a Court of Arbitration, contrary to the treaty’s prescribed framework.
The Indus Waters Treaty, brokered by the World Bank and signed in 1960, allocates the eastern rivers—Ravi, Beas and Sutlej—to India, while Pakistan has rights over the western rivers—Indus, Jhelum and Chenab. The agreement permits India to develop run-of-the-river hydropower projects on the western rivers within specified limits.
According to the sources, any decision to revive the treaty will depend entirely on Pakistan demonstrating sustained and verifiable action against cross-border terrorism and adhering to the spirit of bilateral cooperation.
