Why if Indus delta is threatened, it will be common loss for India and Pakistan

By Bharat Dogra

“Sindhu in might surpasses all the rivers that flow. His roar is lifted up to heaven above the earth, he with his wealth makes fertile both the worlds.”--Rigveda

In recent weeks disturbing news has been coming in from Sindh in Pakistan regarding the agitations involving farmers, fisher-folk, lawyers, local political leaders and others against a six-canal project being promoted by the Pakistani government , largely with the aim of providing irrigation for corporate farming projects from the waters of the Indus river system. Although a temporary pause of this project has been announced in the middle of rising tensions, serious concerns of people still remain regarding this.

Why the people of Sindh have been agitated is that already the water of the Indus River that is able to reach the lower reach of Sindh has been reduced because of the construction of several large dam projects which were publicized as symbols of development but in reality have ended up inflicting many adverse social and ecological impacts.

One of these adverse impacts is the lower availability of water in several lower reaches of Sindh, increasing the problems of farmers, fisher-folk as well as other sections of people.

In addition there are very serious ecological problems arising due to this, particularly in the delta region, where with low levels of fresh river water reaching the delta and the sea the risk of salt water intrusion from the sea can increase. Several species of fish including the much-loved but threatened pink dolphin, other water-life including species of water-birds are also adversely affected.

All this is on top of other serious problems including those relating to climate change, with relentless increase of sea water erosion increasing threats for village after village. The heavy melting in glaciers today will ultimately deprive rivers of their main source of water tomorrow.

It is against this background that the worrying concerns of the people of Sindh relating to the six canal project should be understood. Although the government has belatedly announced a temporary pause following the protests, there is every possibility that the project may be revived later as powerful interests are known to have a stake in the corporate projects these canals are supposed to irrigate.

Meanwhile, following the horrible attack by terrorists on entirely innocent tourists resulting in the death of 26 persons and injuries to others in Pahalgam in India, there has been a very rapid further deterioration in the already strained relations between India and Pakistan. Both sides have announced hostile steps.

One of these steps announced by India relates to the suspension of the Indus Water Treaty. This in turn has given an opportunity to the lobbyists for dams and related river projects to immediately pitch in for hastily taking forward such projects. Therefore it is important to voice a timely warning that it is folly to take up development projects in a hurry on the basis of hostile feelings. Any big development project, particularly river project, can have several good and bad results and it is important to very carefully consider all aspects in a non-partisan manner, remaining unaffected by the big business construction lobbyists, before taking any decision. All this is particularly relevant in the context of large dam projects in the Himalayan region where adverse ecological and social impacts have to be considered all the more carefully because of existing hazardous and difficult geological conditions, fragile ecology and the sensitivities of people living in border areas.

All this is important not only at the local level for India, but in addition this is also important in a wider context. China is constructing mega dam projects very close to the Indian border which can have very adverse impacts for India and Bangladesh, and a time may come soon when India (with or without support from Bangladesh) will have to raise these issues more widely to protect its safety and other interests. India will be in a much better position to do so if India exercises adequate caution to ensure that only beneficial and safe projects are taken up in its Himalayan region.

Pakistan’s opportunistic and highly unethical instigation of terrorist attacks in India resulting in the death of innocent people, now or in the past, must be strongly condemned, and at a wider level support for terrorist actions by anyone anywhere should be condemned. However this should not lead to a situation in which already endangered river systems, a common heritage of all humanity, are subjected to further harm.

Rivers with their flowing water unite all people and give a message of peace and unity. This is particularly true in the context of the Indus river system which nurtured so many civilizations. The Indus and its tributaries are sacred for the people of India as well as Pakistan as these constitute the common heritage of all of South Asia and indeed of all humanity. It may also be mentioned here that very important mythological links of Hinduism can be traced to several of these rivers flowing now in parts of Pakistan. If the rivers are harmed or if the Indus River delta is threatened, then it is our common loss and we all should be prepared to prevent this loss.

---

The writer is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include Protecting Earth for Children, Earth beyond Borders, Planet in Peril , A Day in 2071, and Man over Machine—The Path to Peace

Comments

Plastic burning in homes threatens food, water and air across Global South: Study

By Jag Jivan In a groundbreaking study spanning 26 countries across the Global South , researchers have uncovered the widespread and concerning practice of households burning plastic waste as a fuel for cooking, heating, and other domestic needs. The research, published in Nature Communications , reveals that this hazardous method of managing both waste and energy poverty is driven by systemic failures in municipal services and the unaffordability of clean alternatives, posing severe risks to human health and the environment.

Economic superpower’s social failure? Inequality, malnutrition and crisis of India's democracy

By Vikas Meshram India may be celebrated as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, but a closer look at who benefits from that growth tells a starkly different story. The recently released World Inequality Report 2026 lays bare a country sharply divided by wealth, privilege and power. According to the report, nearly 65 percent of India’s total wealth is owned by the richest 10 percent of its population, while the bottom half of the country controls barely 6.4 percent. The top one percent—around 14 million people—holds more than 40 percent, the highest concentration since 1961. Meanwhile, the female labour force participation rate is a dismal 15.7 percent.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

From colonial mercantilism to Hindutva: New book on the making of power in Gujarat

By Rajiv Shah Professor Ghanshyam Shah ’s latest book, “ Caste-Class Hegemony and State Power: A Study of Gujarat Politics ”, published by Routledge , is penned by one of Gujarat ’s most respected chroniclers, drawing on decades of fieldwork in the state. It seeks to dissect how caste and class factors overlap to perpetuate the hegemony of upper strata in an ostensibly democratic polity. The book probes the dominance of two main political parties in Gujarat—the Indian National Congress and the BJP—arguing that both have sustained capitalist growth while reinforcing Brahmanic hierarchies.

The greatest threat to our food system: The aggressive push for GM crops

By Bharat Dogra Thanks to the courageous resistance of several leading scientists who continue to speak the truth despite increasing pressures from the powerful GM crop and GM food lobby , the many-sided and in some contexts irreversible environmental and health impacts of GM foods and crops, as well as the highly disruptive effects of this technology on farmers, are widely known today.

History, culture and literature of Fatehpur, UP, from where Maulana Hasrat Mohani hailed

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a member of the Constituent Assembly and an extremely important leader of our freedom movement. Born in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, Hasrat Mohani's relationship with nearby district of Fatehpur is interesting and not explored much by biographers and historians. Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri has written a book on Maulana Hasrat Mohani and Fatehpur. The book is in Urdu. He has just come out with another important book, 'Hindi kee Pratham Rachna: Chandayan' authored by Mulla Daud Dalmai.' During my recent visit to Fatehpur town, I had an opportunity to meet Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri and recorded a conversation with him on issues of history, culture and literature of Fatehpur. Sharing this conversation here with you. Kindly click this link. --- *Human rights defender. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/vbrawat , X @freetohumanity, Skype @vbrawat

UP tribal woman human rights defender Sokalo released on bail

By A Representative After almost five months in jail, Adivasi human rights defender and forest worker Sokalo Gond has been finally released on bail.Despite being granted bail on October 4, technical and procedural issues kept Sokalo behind bars until November 1. The Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) and the All India Union of Forest Working People (AIUFWP), which are backing Sokalo, called it a "major victory." Sokalo's release follows the earlier releases of Kismatiya and Sukhdev Gond in September. "All three forest workers and human rights defenders were illegally incarcerated under false charges, in what is the State's way of punishing those who are active in their fight for the proper implementation of the Forest Rights Act (2006)", said a CJP statement.

Would breaking idols, burning books annihilate caste? Recalling a 1972 Dalit protest

By Rajiv Shah A few days ago, I received an email alert from a veteran human rights leader who has fought many battles in Gujarat for the Dalit cause — both through ground-level campaigns and courtroom struggles. The alert, sent in Gujarati by Valjibhai Patel, who heads the Council for Social Justice, stated: “In 1935, Babasaheb Ambedkar burnt the Manusmriti . In 1972, we broke the idol of Krishna , whom we regarded as the creator of the varna (caste) system.”

May the Earth Be Auspicious: Vedic ecology and contemporary crisis in Ashok Vajpeyi’s poetry

By Ravi Ranjan* Ashok Vajpeyi, born in 1941, occupies a singular position in contemporary Hindi poetry as a poet whose work quietly but decisively reorients modern literary consciousness toward ethical, ecological, and civilizational questions. Across more than six decades of writing, Vajpeyi has forged a poetic idiom marked by restraint, philosophical attentiveness, and moral seriousness, resisting both rhetorical excess and ideological simplification.

Search This Blog