On September 21 and 22, 2023, a delegation from India attended a meeting of the Neutral Experts Proceedings in the Kishenganga And Ratle matter at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in Vienna, the Ministry of External Affairs announced in a press release.
The meeting was convened by the Neutral Expert appointed on India’s requests under the aegis of the Indus Waters Treaty and it was attended by the representatives of India and Pakistan. The Indian delegation for the meeting was led by the Department of Water Resources Secretary. The Senior Advocate Harish Salve KC had attended the meeting as India’s Lead Counsel in the matter.
Details of the Press Release
In the press release, the MEA (Ministry of External Affairs) stated that “India’s participation in the meeting is in line with the consistent, principled stand that as per the Indus Water Treaty, the Neutral Experts Proceedings are the only valid proceedings at this juncture.”
This was the reason cited by the MEA for India’s refusal to participate in the parallel proceedings being carried out by an illegally constituted Court of Arbitration on the same set of issues related to Kishenganga and Ratle Hydroelectric Projects (HEP).
It is for this reason that India has taken the treaty consistent decision to not participate in the parallel proceedings being conducted by an illegally constituted Court of Arbitration on the same set of issues pertaining to the Kishenganga and the Ratle Hydropower Projects,” the MEA said in the release.
Further, according to the MEA, the Neutral Experts Proceedings are ongoing and expected to continue for some time. It added that India is engaged and committed in a manner that supports the resolution of issues in accordance with the provisions of the Indus Water Treaty.
Earlier in the month of July 2023, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that India cannot be compelled to participate in the parallel proceedings not envisaged by the Indus Water Treaty. It said that New Delhi’s consistent and principled stand has been that the constitution of the so-called Court of Arbitration is in contravention of the provisions of the Indus Water Treaty.
“We have seen in the press release issued by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) mentioning that an illegally constituted so-called Court of Arbitration has ruled that it has the competence to consider matters concerning the Kishenganga and Ratle Hydropower Projects,” the MEA said in the release. It added, “India’s consistent and principled position has been that the constitution of the so-called Court of Arbitration is in contravention of the provisions of the Indus Water Treaty.
India cannot be compelled to recognise and participate in the illegal and parallel proceedings not envisaged by the treaty.
The Indus Water Treaty
In the year 1960, India and Pakistan signed the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) after nine years of negotiations and the World Bank being the signatory to the pact. The Treaty sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two sides on the use of water from the Indus River and its five tributaries- Sutlej, Beas, Chenab, Ravi and Jhelum.
The Treaty three rivers each to India and Pakistan. River waters from the Ravi, Beas and Sutlej have been allocated to India and Chenab, Jhelum and Indus itself were allocated to Pakistan. It also established the Permanent Indus Commission. According to Article 9 of the IWT, there exists a three-step mechanism under which questions can be resolved at the Permanent Commission.
In the case of unresolved disputes, affiliated to water sharing between the two countries, either side can approach the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert to come to a decision. If either party is not satisfied with the decision, then the matter can be referred to a Court of Arbitration.
Kishanganga Hydroelectric Project
It is located five km north of Bandipore in Jammu and Kashmir, India. It includes a 37-foot-tall concrete face rockfill dam. It will have an installed capacity of 330MW. The construction began in the year 2007, and Pakistan objected that the project would affect the flow of the Kishanganga River (called Neelum River in Pakistan). In 2013, the Hague (PCA) ruled that India could divert all the water with certain conditions.
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