LAHORE, Dec 23: India “cannot” unilaterally scrap Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan nor is it for the time being in a position to withhold water of three rivers flowing into this country, highly placed official sources said here on Sunday. The treaty was brokered by the World Bank in 1960 and no party can pull out of it or repeal it on its own, the sources explained.

Under the agreement, water of Indus, Jhelum and Chenab were given to Pakistan while those of Ravi, Beas and Sutlej to India.

The World Bank is also a signatory to the treaty like Pakistan and India.

New Delhi is reportedly thinking of scrapping the treaty as one of a series of punitive actions against Islamabad, recalling of its high commissioner to Pakistan being the first one.

The sources said that there was no provision in the treaty under which any party could take a unilateral action. However, both parties can, by consent, take steps to save each other from any possible harm to the other side as a result of any project planned by one party.

This, the sources said, means that if Pakistan plans to set up any project on any of the rivers it owned but the same has an adverse effect on India, the two sides may sit together to find a solution.

An official familiar with the details of the treaty as well as India’s storages said on Sunday that so far India had no storages on the rivers flowing into Pakistan and thus it was not in a position to withhold their water and create shortages for Pakistan. To be able to create any problem, India would have to first set up storages on these rivers, a task which will take years to complete even if undertaken immediately, the official said.

Challenging India’s competence to dissociate itself with the Indus Water Treaty, the official said no party could even set up any project in violation of the treaty, leave alone pulling out of it.

He pointed out that India had started Wullar Barrage on Jhelum which was in contravention of the treaty. Pakistan took up the matter with India and work on the barrage stands suspended since 1987.

Both sides have held nine rounds of talks on the issue and work on the project is still suspended. In case India decides to resume work on the controversial project, Pakistan, under the treaty, would have the right to take the matter to a court of arbitration, the official said.

Punjab PPP (SB) President Dr Mubashir Hasan said in a press statement here on Sunday: “It would be construed as an act of war by the other party if India or Pakistan make any attempt to violate the provisions of the Indus Basin Water Treaty between the two countries”.

Commenting on reports that certain influential elements in New Delhi have been promoting the idea that for the attack on the Indian parliament, Pakistan should be starved through scrapping the Indus Water Treaty, he said: “Such suggestions can only come out of diseased minds, blinded by feelings of hate and intolerance who do not understand the implications of what they are proposing.”

Dr Hasan, who taught the subjects of irrigation, canal and dams engineering at the local university for 14 years, said: “If the irrigation water supplies from the Indus system to Pakistan are reduced by one per cent, it would amount to starvation threat for a population of one million, four hundred thousand people. No government of Pakistan can take such a measure lying down. It will have to act to find alternative supplies”.

About the manner Pakistan can retaliate and augment its supplies, the former federal finance minister said: “Pakistan will have to take military action to reduce India’s capability to divert water from the rivers Ravi, Sutlej and Beas for use in its Punjab, Haryana and Rajhistan which will then naturally flow into Pakistan. A few suicide bombers can perpetrate such horrible acts causing widespread starvation in India. The effects will last over a long period as irrigation works take years and years to rebuild”.

About the chances of this appalling scenario to become a reality, Dr Hasan replied “None whatsoever”.

He said the governments of India and Pakistan had acted in a sensible and civilised manner even during the 1965 and 1971 wars and avoided any damage to vital economic targets of the other country”.