New Delhi: India has reportedly cut off water flow to Pakistan from the Baglihar dam on the Chenab River and is also preparing to taper down runoffs from the Kishanganga project on the Jhelum.
This comes after a week of discussions and hydrological testing. India began de-silting operations in the Baglihar dam and lowered sluice gates, reducing downstream flow to Pakistan by up to 90%, reported Hindustan Times. Similar operations have been planned for the Kishanganga dam, an HT report quoting an official from the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation cited.
“We have closed the gates of the Baglihar hydel power project. We had done de-silting of the reservoir, and it has to be refilled. The process was started on Saturday,” said a second official told HT on conditions of anonymity.
For the first time since 1960, India cuts off water from the Baglihar Dam on Chenab in Jammu & Kashmir🇮🇳 to Pakistan🇵🇰, after the Indus Water Treaty was put into abeyance legally. Next up: The Kishanganga Dam. 💦🔥
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) May 4, 2025
This move comes after Pakistan’s testing of its surface-to-surface ballistic missile on Saturday. Meanhile, the Kishanganga dam, the first mega hydropower plant located in the northwestern Himalayas in the Gurez valley, will also undergo massive maintenance work. All flow of water from it downstream will be halted. Pakistan has reportedly opposed the designs of both these dams.
Obstruction of water flow comes at a time when India has paused the six-decade-old Indus water treaty with Pakistan, following the terror attack at Pahalgam claiming 26 lives last month.
Authorities of the Jal Shakti ministry updated the Union home ministry on the measures being planned to augment water supply to northern states from the Indus system rivers on Saturday, following suspension of the bilateral treaty. Nearly 50 engineers from the NHPC are already in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir to oversee the operations of halting water flow to Pakistan, sources said.
Even before the terror attack, India and Pakistan had disagreement over the design of some dams. Earlier, Pakistan had protested against the Ratle and Kishenganga projects alleging that their designs violated the Indus waters treaty. In June 2024, a five-member Pakistan delegation and World Bank-appointed neutral expert Michel Lino to inspect the Ratle power project at Drabshalla in Kishtwar.
