Pakistan’s canal-based irrigation system ranks among the oldest and largest integrated water networks in the world, forming the backbone of its agrarian economy.

Its origins date back centuries, when the Shah Jahan commissioned the Upper Bari Doab Canal in the 17th century to carry water from the Ravi River to Lahore. Subsequent enhancements under Maharaja Ranjit Singh and further expansion during British colonial rule transformed Punjab into the subcontinent’s agricultural heartland. By the mid-20th century, an extensive canal network irrigated vast tracts of fertile land, supported by a system of headworks regulating river flows.However, the partition of British India in 1947 dramatically altered this arrangement. Under the Radcliffe Award, critical headworks controlling canal waters were allocated to India, despite serving lands that became part of Pakistan. This geographical and administrative division of water infrastructure created an immediate and severe vulnerability for the newly formed state of Pakistan.

Within months of independence, India halted the flow of water into Pakistani canals, triggering an acute agricultural crisis. For a period, Pakistan was compelled to negotiate and even pay for water originating from rivers that naturally flowed into its territory. Although temporary arrangements were reached through negotiations between Liaquat Ali Khan and Jawaharlal........

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