General Studies Mains Test Series (International Relations)

India-Bangladesh water disputes

India and Bangladesh share 54 rivers between them. Despite setting up a Joint River Commission for water management as early as 1972, tensions between the countries on how to share resources recently came to a head in a dispute over the Teesta River. At stake are the lives of countless people from West Bengal and Bangladesh who depend upon the river for survival.

To date, only one comprehensive river pact has been signed by India and Bangladesh – a 1996 bilateral treaty that established a 30-year water-sharing arrangement between the two countries. This was set to change in September 2011 when India’s Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, was due to sign a pact with his Bangladeshi counterpart regarding access and use of the Teesta River.

About The Teesta

The Teesta – which has its source in Sikkim – flows through the northern part of West Bengal in India before entering Bangladesh, where after coursing through about 45km of irrigable land, merges with the Brahmaputra River (or Jamuna when it enters Bangladesh). In 1983, an ad-hoc water sharing agreement was reached between India and Bangladesh, whereby both countries were allocated 39% and 36% of the water flow respectively. The new bilateral treaty expands upon this agreement by proposing an equal allocation of the Teesta River.

However, the deal fell through when the then newly elected Chief Minister of West Bengal, Ms. Mamata Banerjee, refused to approve the treaty, fearing that the loss of higher volume of water to the lower riparian would cause problems in the northern region of state, especially during drier months.

The Road Ahead

Both Bangladesh and West Bengal recognise that dealing with their regional problems offhand is a significant impetus to allowing the water deal to kick off. West Bengal’s Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee made it clear at more than one occasion that her concerns hold in the greater interest of t state rather than admitting concern towards strengthening Indo-Bangladeshi ties. “National interests cannot paramount at the stake of West Bengal”, stated the Irrigation and Waterways Minister Rajib Banerjee of West Bengal.

In the wake of fraying Indo-Bangla relations, the signing of the extradition treaty and a liberalised visa agreement does mark an effort towards improving bilateral relations between the two countries. However, at this juncture, it is expedient that Bangladesh continues cooperation till India re-adopts water diplomacy and refrains from acting as the ‘stipulated’ big brother in the region.