October 14, 2008	Tuesday	Shawwal 14, 1429

LAHORE, Oct 13: Pakistan would neither drop its claim nor sell the Chenab water which India ‘stole’ in September this year, Indus Commissioner Syed Jamaat Ali Shah said here on Monday.

Talking to newsmen at the International Congress on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID), he said a delegation would leave for India on the 18th and re-emphasise its demand for 200,000 acre feet of water that India used to fill Baglihar dam.

“India will have to compensate Pakistan during the coming Rabi season. Otherwise, Islamabad will resort to other treaty mechanisms to get its due share,” he insisted.

Pakistan has no objection now to the design of the dam, which was changed by India on recommendations of a neutral expert. But it also had to observe the filling criteria, which was not part of the treaty, he said.

“If India insists on its rights under the treaty it also has to observe its duties that exclude tampering with the Chenab flows. It is under treaty obligation to release 55,000 cusecs even when filling the lake,” he said.