No excess water to Pak: Union min

Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Monday said India will stop the flow of excess water into Pakistan without violating the Indus Water Treaty. The Union water resources minister said the government has begun the process.

"There is a treaty between India and Pakistan on Indus river water but there is lot of excess water of other rivers which flows to Pakistan," he told reporters here. He said there is a vast land area beyond the Ravi river and rainwater which gets accumulated there goes to Pakistan through rivers.

"We will stop excess flow of water to Pakistan which is the right of Indian farmers and people, and no one should have objections on it," Shekhawat said. He recently said dams are built not only to generate electricity but also for use in the lean season.

The Indus Water Treaty of September 1960 lays down the rules for sharing the water from the Indus and its tributaries that flow through both the countries. The treaty vests the control of the Beas, Ravi and the Sutlej with India, while Pakistan controls the Indus, Chenab and the Jhelum.

Since Pakistani rivers receive more water from India, the treaty allows India to use the Indus, Chenab and the Jhelum water for limited irrigation and unlimited use for power generation, domestic, industrial and non-consumptive use like navigation, fisheries while laying down the precise regulations for India to build projects.