Pakistan has informed the World Bank about India's completing of the Kishanganga hydropower project during the bank's "pause" period and has urged it to "recognise its responsibility" under the Indus Waters Treaty, a media report said today.

Pakistan has approached the World Bank, the mediator between the two countries of the water distribution treaty, in the past and raised issues over Kishanganga and Ratle projects in Jammu and Kashmir.

It has been flagging concern over designs of India's five hydroelectricity projects - Pakal Dul (1000 MW), Ratle (850 MW), Kishanganga (330 MW), Miyar (120 MW) and Lower Kalnai (48 MW) - being built/planned in the Indus river basin, contending these violate the treaty.

The power division of the energy ministry sent a fresh communique early this week to the bank's vice president urging the international organisation to ensure that India abided by the provisions of the 1960 treaty while building the projects, a government official told Dawn newspaper.

The official said the letter had reached the bank's head office in Washington and had been delivered to its vice president concerned as confirmed by Pakistan's director to the bank, the report said.

The official said there was no doubt that India had completed the Kishanganga project during the period the World Bank "paused" the process for constitution of a Court of Arbitration (COA) as requested by Pakistan in early 2016.

Pakistan's request was countered by India by calling for a neutral expert.

Pakistan had called for resolution of disputes over Kishanganga project on the Neelum river and Ratle hydropower project on the Chenab.

Asked about the government's next move, the official said the authorities could not just sit back and had to take the matter to its logical conclusion.

Pakistan had received reports in August last year that New Delhi had completed the Kishanganga project as per the design that had been objected by Islamabad, the report said.

The letter was sent to the World Bank after a Pakistani delegation of the Indus Waters Commission was not allowed to visit various projects in India, including Kishanganga and Ratle schemes, it said.

Pakistan has raised objections over the design of the hydel project in Jammu and Kashmir, saying it is not in line with the criteria laid down under the Indus Water Treaty between the two countries.

India has, however, asserted the project design is "well within parameters" of the treaty and urged the bank to appoint a neutral expert.

In December 2016, the bank had announced that it had "paused" the process for either appointing a COA or a neutral expert and started mediation between the two countries on how to advance and develop consensus in the light of the treaty on the mechanism for resolution of faulty designs of the two projects.

Since then, the bank has arranged two rounds of talks between the two sides but the Indians kept on building the project, the report alleged.

The last round of bank-facilitated and secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan were held in Washington in September that ended in disappointment for Pakistan, it said.

In view of the inability of the parties to agree on whether a COA or a neutral expert is the way forward, the World Bank is reported to have called another round of discussions to minimise the differences but failed to bring New Delhi to the negotiating table.

Under the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty, the waters of the eastern rivers&nbspthe Sutlej, Beas and Ravi had been allocated to India and that of the western rivers&nbspthe Indus, Jhelum and Chenab&nbspto Pakistan except for certain non-consumptive uses.&nbsp

Pakistan has informed the World Bank about India's completing of the Kishanganga hydropower project during the bank's 'pause' period and has urged it to 'recognise its responsibility' under the Indus Waters Treaty

Pakistan has informed the World Bank about India's completing of the Kishanganga hydropower project during the bank's "pause" period and has urged it to "recognise its responsibility" under the Indus Waters Treaty, a media report said today. Pakistan has approached the World Bank, the mediator between the two countries of the water distribution treaty, in the past and raised issues over Kishanganga and Ratle projects in Jammu and Kashmir. It has been flagging concern over designs of India's five hydroelectricity projects - Pakal Dul (1000 MW), Ratle (850 MW), Kishanganga (330 MW), Miyar (120 MW) and Lower Kalnai (48 MW) - being built/planned in the Indus river basin, contending these violate the treaty. The power division of the energy ministry sent a fresh communique early this week to the bank's vice president urging the international organisation to ensure that India abided by the provisions of the 1960 treaty while building the projects, a government official told Dawn newspaper. The official said the letter had reached the bank's head office in Washington and had been delivered to its vice president concerned as confirmed by Pakistan's director to the bank, the report said. The official said there was no doubt that India had completed the Kishanganga project during the period the World Bank "paused" the process for constitution of a Court of Arbitration (COA) as requested by Pakistan in early 2016. Pakistan's request was countered by India by calling for a neutral expert. Pakistan had called for resolution of disputes over Kishanganga project on the Neelum river and Ratle hydropower project on the Chenab. Asked about the government's next move, the official said the authorities could not just sit back and had to take the matter to its logical conclusion. Pakistan had received reports in August last year that New Delhi had completed the Kishanganga project as per the design that had been objected by Islamabad, the report said. The letter was sent to the World Bank after a Pakistani delegation of the Indus Waters Commission was not allowed to visit various projects in India, including Kishanganga and Ratle schemes, it said. Pakistan has raised objections over the design of the hydel project in Jammu and Kashmir, saying it is not in line with the criteria laid down under the Indus Water Treaty between the two countries. India has, however, asserted the project design is "well within parameters" of the treaty and urged the bank to appoint a neutral expert. In December 2016, the bank had announced that it had "paused" the process for either appointing a COA or a neutral expert and started mediation between the two countries on how to advance and develop consensus in the light of the treaty on the mechanism for resolution of faulty designs of the two projects. Since then, the bank has arranged two rounds of talks between the two sides but the Indians kept on building the project, the report alleged. The last round of bank-facilitated and secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan were held in Washington in September that ended in disappointment for Pakistan, it said. In view of the inability of the parties to agree on whether a COA or a neutral expert is the way forward, the World Bank is reported to have called another round of discussions to minimise the differences but failed to bring New Delhi to the negotiating table. Under the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty, the waters of the eastern rivers&nbspthe Sutlej, Beas and Ravi had been allocated to India and that of the western rivers&nbspthe Indus, Jhelum and Chenab&nbspto Pakistan except for certain non-consumptive uses.

Pakistan approaches World Bank over Kishanganga project: Report

India is allowed to construct hydroelectric power facilities on tributaries of the Jhelum and Chenab rivers with certain restrictions under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), the World Bank has said.

The World Bank&#39;s comments came as officials from India Pakistan concluded the secretary-level talks over the Indus Water Treaty.

Pakistan opposes the construction of the Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle&nbsp;(850 megawatts) hydroelectric power plants being built by India in Jammu and Kashmir, the global lender said in a fact sheet issued yesterday.

Noting that the two countries disagree over whether the technical design features of the two hydroelectric plants contravene the treaty, the World Bank said the Indus Water Treaty designates these two rivers as well as the Indus as the &quot;Western Rivers&quot; to which Pakistan has an unrestricted use.

&quot;Among other uses,&nbsp;India is permitted to construct hydroelectric power facilities on these rivers subject to constraints specified in annexures to the treaty,&quot; the Bank said in its fact sheet.

It noted that the talks on the technical issues of the IWT took place this week &quot;in a spirit of goodwill and cooperation&quot;.

The parties have agreed to continue discussions and reconvene in September in Washington DC, it said in a separate statement.

In the lengthy fact sheet,&nbsp;the World Bank said Pakistan asked it to facilitate the setting up of a Court of Arbitration to look into its concerns about the designs of the two hydroelectric power projects.

On the other hand, India had asked for the appointment of a neutral expert to look into the issues, contending the concerns Pakistan raised were &quot;technical&quot; ones.

The Indus Water Treaty was signed in 1960&nbsp;after nine years of negotiations between India and Pakistan with the help of the World Bank, which is also a signatory.

The World Bank&#39;s role in relation to &quot;differences&quot; and &quot;disputes&quot; is limited to the designation of people to fulfil certain roles when requested by either or both of the parties, the fact sheet said.

Earlier, in a letter dated July 25, the World Bank had assured Indian Ambassador to the US, Navtej Sarna, its &quot;continued neutrality and impartiality in helping the parties to find an&nbsp;amicable way forward.&quot;

The two countries last held talks over the two projects in March this year during the meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission (PIC) in Pakistan.

Pakistan had approached the World Bank last year, raising concerns over the designs of two hydroelectricity projects located in Jammu and Kashmir.

It had demanded that the World Bank, which is the mediator between the two countries under the 57-year-old water distribution pact, set up a court of arbitration to look into its concerns. 
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The World Bank noted that India and Pakistan disagree over the technical design features of the hydroelectric plants

India is allowed to construct hydroelectric power facilities on tributaries of the Jhelum and Chenab rivers with certain restrictions under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), the World Bank has said. The World Bank's comments came as officials from India Pakistan concluded the secretary-level talks over the Indus Water Treaty. Pakistan opposes the construction of the Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric power plants being built by India in Jammu and Kashmir, the global lender said in a fact sheet issued yesterday. Noting that the two countries disagree over whether the technical design features of the two hydroelectric plants contravene the treaty, the World Bank said the Indus Water Treaty designates these two rivers as well as the Indus as the "Western Rivers" to which Pakistan has an unrestricted use. "Among other uses, India is permitted to construct hydroelectric power facilities on these rivers subject to constraints specified in annexures to the treaty," the Bank said in its fact sheet. It noted that the talks on the technical issues of the IWT took place this week "in a spirit of goodwill and cooperation". The parties have agreed to continue discussions and reconvene in September in Washington DC, it said in a separate statement. In the lengthy fact sheet, the World Bank said Pakistan asked it to facilitate the setting up of a Court of Arbitration to look into its concerns about the designs of the two hydroelectric power projects. On the other hand, India had asked for the appointment of a neutral expert to look into the issues, contending the concerns Pakistan raised were "technical" ones. The Indus Water Treaty was signed in 1960 after nine years of negotiations between India and Pakistan with the help of the World Bank, which is also a signatory. The World Bank's role in relation to "differences" and "disputes" is limited to the designation of people to fulfil certain roles when requested by either or both of the parties, the fact sheet said. Earlier, in a letter dated July 25, the World Bank had assured Indian Ambassador to the US, Navtej Sarna, its "continued neutrality and impartiality in helping the parties to find an amicable way forward." The two countries last held talks over the two projects in March this year during the meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission (PIC) in Pakistan. Pakistan had approached the World Bank last year, raising concerns over the designs of two hydroelectricity projects located in Jammu and Kashmir. It had demanded that the World Bank, which is the mediator between the two countries under the 57-year-old water distribution pact, set up a court of arbitration to look into its concerns.

Indus Waters Treaty: India gets World Bank nod on Kishanganga project

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Amid rising hostility between India and Pakistan following September Uri attack in Kashmir &nbsp;and ensuing surgical strikes, Pakistan has asked the World Bank to arbitrate in its Kishanganga hydel dispute with India saying it will impact the flow of water into the country.

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It has asked the international lender to appoint a neutral expert to settle the dispute, Indian news agency PTI reported.&nbsp;

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The project aims to divert water from India&#39;s Kishanganga River to its power plant in the Jhelum river basin in northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir.&nbsp;

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Pakistan has objected to the design of the hydro-electric project saying it violates the parameters of the Indus Water Treaty between the two countries, PTI reported quoting sources.&nbsp;

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India, however, asserts that the project design is &quot;well within parameters&quot; of the treaty and has urged the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert with technical expertise since in its opinion an engineer would be able to understand the issue better than a legal expert, a sources told PTI, adding that both India and Pakistan presented their facts separately to the World Bank on September 27 in Washington.

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&quot;They (Pakistan) have objected to the design of the project. Under the treaty, there are design criteria which say the design of the project should be like this. We firmly believe that our design is well within the parameters laid down in the treaty. But they think otherwise. They believe India&#39;s design of the project will affect flow of the river to Pakistan.

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Pakistan has requested the World Bank to set up a Court of Arbitration. India demands that the matter be looked into by a neutral expert as it is a technical matter. The treaty says the same,&quot; the source said.

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He also told PTI that India would be able to continue its work on project which is estimated to generate 360 MW electricity.&nbsp;

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&quot;Unlike the popular perception, nowhere in the treaty is it written that the work has to be stopped when the dispute resolution process is going on. The work can go on,&quot; the source clarified.

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The sources also claimed that the Washington meeting had nothing do with India&#39;s surgical strikes&nbsp;was scheduled well before the terrorist attack in Uri.

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Pakistan, a lower riparian state, had first objected to the project in 2010 and approached the International Court of Arbitration. It had claimed that the project would affect the flow of Kishanganga, known as Neelum in Kashmir, &quot;adversely,&quot; and would also impact the power generation capacity of its Neelum-Jhelum hydel plant, located downstream of Kishanganga. Work on both the projects began in 2007.

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The matter was settled in favour of India in 2013.

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(WION with inputs from PTI)

Pakistan has objected to the hydroelectricity project design saying it will impact the flow of water into the country

Amid rising hostility between India and Pakistan following September Uri attack in Kashmir and ensuing surgical strikes, Pakistan has asked the World Bank to arbitrate in its Kishanganga hydel dispute with India saying it will impact the flow of water into the country. It has asked the international lender to appoint a neutral expert to settle the dispute, Indian news agency PTI reported. The project aims to divert water from India's Kishanganga River to its power plant in the Jhelum river basin in northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan has objected to the design of the hydro-electric project saying it violates the parameters of the Indus Water Treaty between the two countries, PTI reported quoting sources. India, however, asserts that the project design is "well within parameters" of the treaty and has urged the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert with technical expertise since in its opinion an engineer would be able to understand the issue better than a legal expert, a sources told PTI, adding that both India and Pakistan presented their facts separately to the World Bank on September 27 in Washington. "They (Pakistan) have objected to the design of the project. Under the treaty, there are design criteria which say the design of the project should be like this. We firmly believe that our design is well within the parameters laid down in the treaty. But they think otherwise. They believe India's design of the project will affect flow of the river to Pakistan. Pakistan has requested the World Bank to set up a Court of Arbitration. India demands that the matter be looked into by a neutral expert as it is a technical matter. The treaty says the same," the source said. He also told PTI that India would be able to continue its work on project which is estimated to generate 360 MW electricity. "Unlike the popular perception, nowhere in the treaty is it written that the work has to be stopped when the dispute resolution process is going on. The work can go on," the source clarified. The sources also claimed that the Washington meeting had nothing do with India's surgical strikes was scheduled well before the terrorist attack in Uri. Pakistan, a lower riparian state, had first objected to the project in 2010 and approached the International Court of Arbitration. It had claimed that the project would affect the flow of Kishanganga, known as Neelum in Kashmir, "adversely," and would also impact the power generation capacity of its Neelum-Jhelum hydel plant, located downstream of Kishanganga. Work on both the projects began in 2007. The matter was settled in favour of India in 2013. (WION with inputs from PTI)

Pak asks World Bank to settle Kishanganga dispute with India by appointing neutral expert