अफगानिस्तान का पाकिस्तान को पानी देने से इनकार: कुनार नदी पर डैम बनाने की तैयारी; भारत ने सिंधु जल संधि स्थगित किया था

Taliban’s supreme leader Mawlavi Hibatullah Akhundzada has asked to build a dam on the Kunar River.

After India, now Afghanistan is also preparing to build a dam to stop the water going towards Pakistan. The Afghan Information Ministry gave this information by posting on X on Thursday.

The Information Ministry said that Taliban’s supreme leader Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada has ordered to build a dam on the Kunar River as soon as possible.

Ministry’s Deputy Minister Muhajir Farahi said on Thursday that the Water and Energy Ministry has been asked to start the dam construction soon by giving contracts to domestic companies. No need to wait for foreign companies. Afghanistan has taken this decision after the recent conflict.

In the clashes that lasted from October 9 to October 18, 37 Afghan civilians were killed and 425 were injured. At the same time, India had also stopped the water going towards Pakistan by suspending the Indus Water Treaty on April 23 after the Pahalgam terrorist attack.

Pakistan uses 70-80% of the water of Kunar River.

The 480 km long Kunar River originates from Afghanistan and becomes Chitral River in Pakistan and joins the Kabul River. 70-80% of the water of Kunar River comes to Pakistan.

This Kabul river then joins the Indus river. If Afghanistan blocks the water of Kunar by building a dam, Pakistan will suffer serious losses.

This will have a direct impact on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK). In areas like Bajaur, Mohammad, farming is completely dependent on this river. Stopping irrigation will increase the risk of crop failure.

Additionally, the blockage of water will affect more than 20 small hydel projects running on the Kunar river in Pakistan’s Chitral district. All these projects are run-of-river, that is, they generate electricity directly from the flow of the river.

45MW electricity will be generated, 1.5 lakh acres of agriculture will get water

Earlier, Taliban Water and Energy Ministry spokesperson Matiullah Abid had said that the survey and design of this dam has been ready.

The Taliban government claims that if this project is completed, it will generate 45 MW of electricity and provide water for irrigation of about 1.5 lakh acres of agriculture. This will improve the energy crisis and food security in Afghanistan.

Kabul Canal built on the Kabul River in Peshawar, Pakistan.

There is no agreement between Pak-Afghan regarding Kunar River

There is no formal bilateral agreement between Pakistan and Afghanistan regarding sharing of waters of the Kabul River and its tributaries.

Pakistan has already expressed concern over Afghanistan’s dam projects as it could reduce the water supply coming to its region.

Taliban’s decision came after conflict with Pakistan

The conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan started on 9 October. Pakistan attacked Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) positions in Kabul. After this, Afghanistan blamed Pakistan for the border dispute and airspace violation.

According to the UN, 37 Afghan civilians were killed and 425 injured in Pakistani attacks. Afghanistan’s Taliban government accuses Pakistan of targeting civilian areas, while Pakistan says it took action on terrorist hideouts.

Actually, the root of the dispute between the two countries is the Durand Line, which was drawn between India and Afghanistan during the British era. It divides the traditional land of both the countries and the Pathans on both sides never accept it.

Afghanistan’s capital Kabul was attacked by Pakistan.

India has canceled the Indus water agreement with Pakistan

India-Pakistan Indus Water Agreement was signed in 1960 between India and India. India had canceled this treaty after the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir on 22 April.

There are a total of 6 rivers in the Indus river system – Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Sutlej. The area along their banks is spread over about 11.2 lakh square kilometers. Of this, 47% land is in Pakistan, 39% land is in India, 8% land is in China and 6% land is in Afghanistan. About 30 crore people from all these countries live in these areas.

Even before the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947, the dispute over sharing of river water had started between Punjab of India and Sindh province of Pakistan. It was signed between India’s PM Nehru and Pakistan’s President Ayub Khan in Karachi on 19 September 1960. It is called Indus Water Treaty or Indus Water Treaty.

Afghan Foreign Minister came to India

This decision of Afghanistan has come after the visit of Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaki to India. Muttaki visited India on 9 October, during which he met Foreign Minister S. Had met Jaishankar. Both sides had expressed their commitment to hydro-electricity cooperation.

India has two big projects going on in Afghanistan. These include Salma Dam and Shahtoot Dam. Salma Dam (2016) in Herat, built at a cost of $300 million.

At the same time, Shahtoot Dam will be built on a tributary of Kabul River at a cost of about Rs 2,000 crore. India is bearing its entire expense. This will provide drinking water to 20 lakh people and 4,000 hectares can be cultivated. It is expected to be completed by 2026.

Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar had met with Muttaki on October 10.