Indian media reports indicate the completion of Shahpur Kandi barrage on Ravi River along the boundary of Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and Indian Punjab has cut off the river’s flow into Pakistan.
According to India Today, the region of occupied J&K will now benefit from the 1150 cusecs of water previously allotted to Pakistan. The reports state that 32,000 hectares of land in Samba and Kathua districts will be irrigated by the diverted water.
Despite several hurdles over the past 30 years, the Shahpur Kandi barrage project is nearly finished now. As per the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, India has exclusive rights over Ravi, Sutlej and Beas river waters while Pakistan controls Indus, Jhelum and Chenab rivers, Indian media recalled.
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With the new barrage in place, India can now fully utilize the waters of Ravi river, meaning Punjab and J&K will use the water earlier flowing into Pakistan from the old Lakhanpur dam, the reports highlighted.
India has previously built several storage works like Bhakra Dam on Sutlej, Pong and Pandoh Dams on Beas and Thein (Ranjitsagar) on Ravi. Initiatives like the Indira Gandhi Canal and Beas-Sutlej link have also enabled India to tap almost the entire share of eastern rivers, around 95%.
Per media accounts, nearly 2 million acre-feet of Ravi’s water flowing into Pakistan below Madhopur still remained unutilized. But the completion of Shahpur Kandi barrage will now allow India to optimally harness the river’s water resources.
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