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Editorial in Pakistani Newspaper: India Conceives ‘Water Bomb’ to Economically Strangulate Pakistan
An editorial in a Pakistani newspaper has accused India of planning a ‘Water Bomb’ strategy to economically strangulate Pakistan. The right-wing newspaper Roznama Ausaf quoted the officials of Indus Basin Water Council as saying that India wants to achieve through ‘water bomb’ what it could not achieve through three wars. The editorial said India is planning about 50 dams to raid the waters of the rivers flowing into Pakistan and ‘‘if this was not foiled, Pakistan will face the worst famine and economic disaster.’’
According to the editorial, many analysts have impressed upon the Pakistani government to develop a counter-strategy to confront India’s ‘dangerous ambitions’ but their voice was not heard, putting the nation in danger. It said, ‘‘Not only this. India was given easy rides which helped it complete most work on Baglihar Dam [that can control water flow from Indian-administered Kashmir into Pakistan].’’
The editorial added: ‘‘With the aid of Israel, India also managed to build a fence on the working boundary and on the Line of Control [in Kashmir]. It was with the Israeli help that it installed sensitive equipment on working boundary and Line of Control to monitor the movement of Kashmiri freedom fighters.’’
The Line of Control is a de facto ceasefire line that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan. Whereas, Pakistan does not recognize the Working Boundary – which runs from Kashmir’s Jammu region where the Line of Control ends to Sialkot district in Pakistan’s Punjab province where the International Border between the two nations starts. Punjab too is shared by the two neighbours.
India and Pakistan are signatories to the Indus Water Treaty which governs the water flow across the international boundary of three rivers into Pakistan and as many into India. Pakistan accuses India of introducing design parameters in the Baglihar Dam that can give advantage to India to hold lots of waters and operate its water-run projects at Pakistan’s cost. A World Bank verdict on the dam has now been accepted by the two sides.
Source: Roznama Ausaf, Pakistan, March 15, 2008
Posted at: 2008-03-17
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