Editorial
Teesta water sharing
JRC should move energetically to seal a deal
The water secretaries' level joint committee of experts (JCE) meeting in New Delhi with its limited agenda on the table ended inconclusively. For the last ten years, India and Bangladesh have been engaged in talks, on and off, on the question of sharing the waters of Teesta and seven other common rivers without a tangible forward foothold reached in terms of resolving the issue. We recall a good deal of optimism having been generated by the Ganges water treaty signed a decade ago to carry forward the overall task of equitable distribution of common river waters between the two countries. But this has not been lived up to. The JCE meeting in Delhi, first in the last three years, was said to be seeking to firm up an interim deal on sharing waters of Teesta and seven other common rivers. The natural question to ask would be: why even after thirty-six years of our neighbourly co-existence we still find ourselves locked in a quest for an interim solution. Should we not have resolved the question on a durable basis by now? Dhaka demands equal distribution of 80 percent of the Teesta water between the two countries with a stipulation for conservation of 20 percent as the river's natural flow. New Delhi demands a greater share claiming that a larger portion of the river flows through its territory. India reportedly wants 39 percent to Bangladesh's 36 percent. The matter has been referred to the joint rivers commission (JRC) for resolution at the water ministers' level. Besides referring the differences to the JRC, the joint statement has recognised some problems requiring a common approach. Forty points in India and twenty-nine in Bangladesh have been identified for river protection work with a decision taken to exchange construction details of various riverbank works, including lift irrigation schemes on common rivers. Dredging and pure water supply issues will be taken up. Information sharing will help 'bring transparency and remove apprehensions on both sides', as has been aptly put in the statement. While such confidence building measures and attention to detail are welcome, we must emphasise the need for an early JRC meet to take up the matter and resolve the common river water issue. It's of utmost importance that India as the upper riparian state feels obliged to come the extra mile to meet the water requirements of Bangladesh.
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