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Teesta talks stall on Indian foot-dragging

Sharing of 54 common rivers also becomes uncertain

JULHAS RIPON
India's dillydallying on reaching an accord on water sharing of the Teesta river has made equitable sharing of waters of all the 54 common rivers uncertain, sources said.
Article IX of the Ganges Water Sharing Treaty with India provides that treaty would be made for sharing of waters of all the common rivers.
The Joint Committee of Experts
(JCE) under the Joint River Commission (JRC) was to discuss water sharing of the Teesta as well as the other rivers this month. But it could not do so due to non-response from the Indian side.
The meeting was supposed to be convened by the Indian government in New Delhi.
Besides, Delhi is still to respond SEE PAGE 11 COL 7 FROM PAGE 1
to a communication from Minister for Water Resources LK Siddiqui to his Indian counterpart recently for an immediate meeting of the JRC.
The JCE headed by the water resource secretaries of the two countries has been working for the last six years to find out ways of permanent or longterm sharing of water of seven major rivers -- Teesta, Dharala, Dudhkumar, Monu, Khowai, Gumti and Muhuri.
"We are optimistic about resolving the issue bilaterally, but the Indian side is not on the right track and is not taking into consideration the inconveniences of Bangladesh," said a top policy-maker of the government seeking anonymity.
Bangladesh wants an immediate agreement to get its due share of the Teesta water as the river's water flow during lean period (November to May) declined to 300 to 400 cusecs from 5000 cusecs in the last few years.
But no tangible progress in this regard could be made due to 'partisan attitude of the neighbouring country', he said.
Bangladesh officials said that since the inception of the JCE in 1997 to resolve the issue of water sharing of all the common rivers, no substantial progress has been achieved due to partisan attitude of the neighbouring country.
At the fifth meeting of the JCE in Dhaka last year, Bangladesh firmly wanted an immediate agreement on the Teesta water as per the provision of Ganges Water Sharing Treaty. But India took a 'clever stand' saying that before reaching such an agreement, 'it needs a five-year scientific study to examine the water flow of the Teesta'.
A JRC member from the Bangladesh side said, "We want the agreement on the basis of current water flow of the river, but India is trying to bypass the core factors."
India now unilaterally withdraws water from the common rivers at will during lean season, which is not a 'healthy practice', he noted.
The water resources minister told The Daily Star, " We want joint management of the common rivers as all the major rivers in Bangladesh originated from India or Nepal. It is a question of our survival as we are in the downstream."