Nehru gave 80% Indus water to Pakistan, says Shivraj
Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday launched a sharp attack on India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, accusing him of committing a “historic blunder” by signing the Indus Water Treaty and giving away 80 percent of the river water to Pakistan even as experts had opposed this.
“Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was the PM at that time. Not only he gave 80 percent water to Pakistan, but also Rs 83 crore which is equivalent to Rs 5,500 crore at present,” he said.
The minister’s sharp remarks came during an interaction with the heads of different farmer organisations — the first talks after India suspended the Indus Water Treaty.
Notably, India decided to hold the Indus Water Treaty in abeyance on April 23, a day after the Pahalgam attack. India cited Pakistan’s sustained cross-border terrorism as the primary reason behind putting the 65-year-old water treaty into abeyance.
The Indus is the longest river in South Asia, spanning over 3,000 kilometers. It includes a complex system of tributaries that flows from Tibet, through divided Kashmir, and into Pakistan, before emptying into the Arabian Sea near Karachi. The treaty gave India control over the waters of the three ‘Eastern Rivers’ — the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej, while the Pakistan controlled the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum.
Chouhan alleged the decision to concede river waters to Pakistan was made despite expert opposition and had long-term consequences for Indian farmers. “Water was given to a country that promotes terrorism, while our own farmers were left struggling,” he said.
