FOR 65 years, the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) survived on false perceptions. These perceptions endured multiple wars, yet could not outlast the ignorance they themselves created — a veil that has separated a billion‑strong regional population from reality for more than half a century.

After the signing of the treaty, Pakistanis were told that without it India would have diverted all the Indus basin water, turning Pakistan into a desert, so the treaty ‘saved’ them. On the Indian side, the narrative was that Pakistan received 80 per cent of the Indus waters, while India, the larger nation, got only 20pc. Both countries were led to believe that without the treaty India could have taken far more water and that the IWT was a massive favour to Pakistan. And now, we have Narendra Modi, himself a victim of this perception, who’s decided to teach Pakistan a ‘lesson’ by breaching the treaty. What lesson? First, a reality check.

Transboundary water treaties exist mainly to protect lower riparian states’ rights to current water use, ecological services tied to natural flow regimes and water quality. In essence, they shield downstream nations from excessive upstream diversions, dam construction and........

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