The Indus Waters Treaty

How India and Pakistan agreed in 1960 to share the rivers of the Indus basin, why the treaty lasted through wars, and the tensions that led India to hold it in abeyance in 2025.

The Indus river system is vital to both India and Pakistan. Its waters irrigate large parts of Punjab on both sides of the border and support Pakistan’s agriculture, which depends heavily on the Indus basin.

The treaty

After independence and partition in 1947, disputes arose over the rivers. With the World Bank’s mediation, India and Pakistan signed the Indus Waters Treaty in 1960. It divided the six rivers:

The eastern rivers, the Ravi, Beas and Sutlej, were allocated to India.
The western rivers, the Indus, Jhelum and Chenab, were allocated mainly to Pakistan, with India allowed limited uses, such as run-of-the-river hydropower that does not significantly store water.

The treaty created a Permanent Indus Commission for cooperation and procedures for resolving disputes, including through neutral experts and a court of arbitration.

Survival through conflict

The treaty was widely regarded as one of the most successful water-sharing agreements in the world, surviving several wars and periods of tension between the two countries.

Tensions

Disputes arose over Indian hydropower projects on western rivers, such as Kishenganga and Ratle, with Pakistan arguing they violated treaty design limits. In April 2025, after a terrorist attack in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, India announced it was holding the treaty “in abeyance”, suspending its participation. Pakistan said any attempt to stop or divert its water would be considered an act of war. The move created great uncertainty over the treaty’s future.

Economic stakes

For Pakistan, the Indus system is central to agriculture, food security and hydropower.
For India, the rivers offer hydropower and irrigation potential in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.
Climate change and glacier melt add further uncertainty to future river flows.

Run-of-the-river hydropower

A run-of-the-river hydropower plant uses the natural flow of a river to generate electricity without a large reservoir that stores water for months. Because it does not significantly hold back water, it was allowed for India on the western rivers under the treaty. Disputes focused on technical details, such as the size of gates and storage, that could affect how much control India had over flows.

Thinking water can easily be cut off overnight

Stopping or diverting large rivers requires major infrastructure, such as dams and canals, that takes years to build. Suspending a treaty changes cooperation and data sharing immediately, but physically changing flows is slow and costly.

Key takeaways

The Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 divided the Indus basin rivers between India and Pakistan.
India received the eastern rivers; Pakistan the western rivers, with limited Indian uses.
It survived wars and was seen as a model water agreement.
India held the treaty in abeyance in April 2025, creating major uncertainty.