Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma Saturday criticised former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru for signing the Indus Waters Treaty and described the accord as one of the greatest strategic blunders in India’s history.
Taking to X, Assam CM Sarma wrote, “Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru’s signing of the Indus Waters Treaty in 1960 stands as one of the greatest strategic blunders in India’s history. Despite India’s natural upper riparian advantage, Nehru, under immense pressure from the then American administration and the World Bank, handed away over 80% of the Indus basin waters to Pakistan – gifting full control over the mighty Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab rivers, while restricting India to the smaller eastern rivers (Ravi, Beas, Sutlej).”
He added that as a result of this treaty, Pakistan received a staggering 135 million acre-feet (MAF) of water annually, while India was left with just 33 MAF.
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru’s signing of the Indus Waters Treaty in 1960 stands as one of the greatest strategic blunders in India’s history. Despite India’s natural upper riparian advantage, Nehru, under immense pressure from the then American administration and the World Bank,…
— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) April 26, 2025
“….Worse, India’s rights over the western rivers were limited to minor irrigation and run-of-the-river hydro projects without meaningful storage, permanently compromising the water needs of Punjab, Haryana, and Jammu & Kashmir. Nehru’s misplaced obsession with international approval came at the cost of India’s long-term national interest, weakening India’s strategic and agricultural strength in its own land,” the Assam chief minister said.
Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty, CM Sarma wrote, “Today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has delivered a historic body blow to this injustice. By initiating India’s withdrawal from the treaty, Modi has reclaimed India’s sovereign rights over its rivers, sending a clear message that India will no longer reward terror and hostility with appeasement.”
Terming the decision as a “bold move”, CM Sarma said it strikes at the heart of Pakistan’s fragile economy, where over 75 per cent of agriculture depends on Indus waters.
“…. Modi’s action marks the rise of a new, assertive India – determined to defend its interests without apology,” he added.
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