India’s Dulhasti-II project on Chenab River deepens hydro-political tensions with Pakistan

In a move that has sharply escalated hydro-political tensions, India has approved the controversial Rs 3,277.45 crore Dulhasti Stage-II run-of-the-river hydroelectric project of 260 megawatt capacity on the Chenab River in Indian-occupied Kashmir, further undermining the Indus Waters Treaty and threatening Pakistan’s downstream water security. The project includes a 3,685-metre-long diversion tunnel, horseshoe pondage, surge and pressure shafts, and an underground powerhouse with two 130MW units. It requires 60.3 hectares of land, including 8.27 hectares of private land from Benzwar and Palmar villages. The Environmental Appraisal Committee (EAC) under the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) of India cleared the Dulhasti Stage-II project, which will draw water from the existing Dulhasti Power Station (Stage I) through a separate 3,685m-long tunnel with a diameter of 8.5m, leading to the construction of a horseshoe pondage for Stage II. In addition to the pondage, the project will feature a surge shaft, a pressure shaft, and an underground powerhouse equipped with two units of 130MW each, resulting in a total installed capacity of 260MW. India’s approval of the Dulhasti Stage-II Hydroelectric Project while keeping the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance reflects a growing pattern of unilateral upstream infrastructure expansion that undermines the principles of cooperative transboundary water governance. The construction of additional tunnels, pondage structures, and flow-regulating infrastructure on the Chenab River system raises serious concerns regarding India’s increasing capacity to manipulate downstream river flows critical to Pakistan’s agricultural and food security. By withholding hydrological data and limiting technical transparency despite repeated international queries, India is weakening confidence in treaty-based mechanisms designed to ensure stability, predictability, and equitable river management in South Asia. India’s continued hydropower expansion on western rivers, without the sharing of critical hydrological data, risks exacerbating hydro-political tensions and increasing vulnerability for millions dependent on the Indus Basin irrigation system. Read More: Arbitration court upholds Pakistan's stance on Indus Waters Treaty The Dulhasti Stage-II project illustrates how run-of-the-river infrastructure can acquire strategic significance when combined with non-cooperative water policies and the suspension of institutional obligations under the Indus Waters Treaty. In an era of accelerating climate stress and water scarcity, India’s manipulation of transboundary rivers reflects an increasingly irresponsible approach toward regional water security and sustainable basin governance. The growing network of upstream hydroelectric projects on the Chenab River enhances India’s operational control over seasonal water flows, creating uncertainty for downstream crop cycles, irrigation planning, and long-term agricultural resilience in Pakistan. India’s refusal to restore full treaty cooperation while simultaneously expanding strategic hydropower infrastructure raises broader concerns regarding the politicisation of water resources and the erosion of international legal norms governing shared river systems.

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