Indus Treaty Suspension Effect: India Asks World Bank To Pause Discussions With Pakistan Over Hydropower Projects

India has moved swiftly to reassert control over its western river systems by initiating a series of hydropower and river management activities that had long been stalled due to Pakistani objections, according to an Indian Express report.

In a letter to World Bank appointed neutral expert Michel Lino, India has officially requested a pause in proceedings related to the Kishanganga and Ratle hydropower project disputes.

The move comes in the wake of the Union Cabinet’s decision to place the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) in abeyance "until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism.”

India's formal communication to Lino urged the vacating of the previously agreed 2025 “work programme,” which includes Pakistan's written response due in August and a fourth joint meeting planned for November. Lino has sought Islamabad’s views, which were opposed to the pause.

Meanwhile, New Delhi is actively ramping up work on multiple fronts. Flushing operations to clear sediment have begun at the Baglihar and Salal projects on the Chenab, the first since their commissioning in 2008–09 and 1987 respectively.

These were previously blocked by Pakistan through IWT mechanisms. Officials now plan to carry out flushing monthly to enhance power output and river health.

The government is also advancing a canal-diversion plan to redirect water from the Indus system into Indian states.

In addition, it was previously reported that four key hydropower projects on the Chenab — Pakal Dul, Ratle, Kiru, and Kwar, were being expedited, with Pakal Dul being the first storage-based project in Jammu & Kashmir.

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