ISLAMABAD, Nov 18: Pakistan on Thursday decided, in principle, to ask the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert to resolve the dispute arising out of the violation of the 1960 Indus Water Treaty by India, it is learnt.
A meeting held here with President General Pervez Musharraf in the chair also decided that Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz should avail himself of the opportunity of his meetings with the Indian leadership next week to take up the issue of the controversial Baglihar hydro-power project before the World Bank was approached in accordance with Annexure-F of the treaty.
The prime minister is scheduled to be in New Delhi early next week as part of his visit to Sri Lanka, the Maldives and India as the outgoing chairman of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. Water and Power Minister Liaquat Ali Jatoi will also accompany the prime minister on the visit.
Informed sources said the announcement to approach the World Bank had been withheld to avoid bad taste ahead of the prime minister's visit. However, the request for the appointment of the neutral expert would not be delayed for more than 20 days, the sources added.
A senior official said that Pakistan had already issued a notice to India in November last year about its intention to seek the neutral expert's appointment, adding there was no need for a fresh notice. He said the process would restart where it was stalled last year on assurances from India to address Pakistan's concerns on bilateral level.
The official said that India had not provided to Pakistan since November last year any data which, he added, showed the expected completion date of the project as December 2006. The first phase would be ready by April 2005, he said.
An official announcement said the president "chaired a high level meeting, attended by the prime minister and other senior officials. The minister for water and power gave a presentation on the Baglihar dam. (The) prime minister's forthcoming visit to Sri Lanka, Maldives and India was also discussed among other issues".
During a meeting on June 24 in New Delhi, the water secretaries of the countries had agreed on a timeframe to resolve the issue bilaterally by November. Since that timeframe has not been adhered to by India, Pakistan has decided to formally approach the World Bank by end of the current month.
In line with the understanding reached between the two water secretaries, India was supposed to provide the data to Pakistan by the end of July. However, the sources said, despite reminders India had not provided any data.
At the heart of the dispute is the project design which, according to Pakistan, provides for submerged gate spillways and, therefore, Indian control over Pakistani waters in breach of the Indus Water Treaty. Pakistan is to lose 7,000-8,000 cusec of water per day if the Baglihar project is completed.
An inter-ministerial meeting on Oct 21 had requested President Musharraf to use 'all channels' to stop India from building the project as Pakistan could no more expect a bilateral solution to the problem.
The foreign office has also said that a bilateral solution to the dispute is not in sight because India has continued the construction despite assurances to address Islamabad's concerns, in what appears to be a move to gain time to complete the project.
However, the attorney-general of Pakistan has pointed out some negative aspects of the legal battle, one being the time it would take before a decision came out. He has called for launching a diplomatic offensive side by side the legal battle.
