India's water tactics: Escalating tensions with Pakistan
Despite the ceasefire agreements, India has not abandoned its threats to limit water supplies to neighbouring Pakistan. "Water and blood cannot flow together," said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his speech last week.
The ceasefire agreed upon last week, following India's airstrikes on targets in Pakistan, marks the first step towards de-escalation of tension, but the fundamental disputes regarding the Kashmir region remain unresolved.
India has not given up on using access to the upper course of the Indus River as leverage against Pakistan. It is worth recalling that India withdrew from the Indus Waters Treaty, officially using access to water as a weapon.
After the attack by militants on tourists in the resort town of Pahalgam in southern Kashmir on April 21, 2025, where 26 people were killed, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered officials to speed up the planning and implementation of projects on the Chenab, Jhelum, and Indus rivers, the three water bodies in the Indus system that are mainly intended for Pakistan's use.
Water and blood
India accuses Pakistan of supporting the activities of the jihadist militant group Lashkar-i-Toiba. Last week, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi clearly stated that "water and blood cannot flow together."
Reports now indicate that India has a plan ready to expand dams and canals that could increase water extraction from rivers, hold it, and thus impact Pakistan's agriculture and energy sector. This strategy could also potentially release it at any moment, intentionally flooding Pakistan.
One of the key projects involves doubling the length of the Ranbir Canal on the Chenab River to 120 kilometres, reports Reuters.
The canal runs through India to the agricultural region of Punjab in Pakistan. It was built in the 19th century, even before the signing of the water treaty regulating access to water for both countries.
India has the right to limited water withdrawal from Chenab for irrigation needs, but expanding the canal, which experts say may take several years, would allow redirecting even 150 cubic metres (about 5,300 cubic feet) of water per second, more than three times compared to the current approximately 40 cubic metres (about 1,400 cubic feet) - writes Reuters based on four sources who have seen the documents.
