India is poised to revive the long-stalled Wular barrage project on the Jhelum River in Jammu and Kashmir, nine months after suspending the Indus Waters Treaty in response to the Pahalgam terrorist attack. Officials have confirmed that construction will resume shortly, in close coordination with the central government, marking a significant shift in water resource management.

The barrage, also known as the Tulbul navigation project, aims to regulate water storage from the Jhelum, ensuring year-round navigability and stabilising water levels in Wular Lake. This vital infrastructure has languished for over four decades due to diplomatic pressures and security threats.

Local communities around Wular Lake, spanning from Bandipore to Sopore, stand to benefit immensely. Fishermen like Imtiyaz Ahmad have endured joblessness as the lake's waters recede dramatically in winter, shrinking from a maximum surface area of 190 square kilometres to a mere 20 square kilometres due to low Jhelum discharge.

The drying lakebed has crippled traditional livelihoods dependent on fishing, water chestnut harvesting, and lotus stem extraction. Siltation has further reduced the lake's depth and capacity, leaving vast areas exposed and unproductive.

Work on the barrage began in 1984 but halted in 1989 amid militancy and separatist unrest. Pakistan, which has consistently opposed the project, viewed it as a threat to its water security under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, brokered by the World Bank.

The treaty allocated overriding rights to Pakistan over the western rivers—Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab—while granting India primary use of the eastern rivers. India could utilise western river waters for non-consumptive purposes like hydropower but faced restrictions on storage projects.

Resumed efforts in 2010 were short-lived; by 2012, Pakistan-backed terrorists targeted the site at Ningli in Sopore, forcing workers to flee and abandoning the construction once more.

The turning point came in April following the deadly Pahalgam attack, prompting India to suspend the treaty. This decision freed New Delhi from obligations to consult Pakistan on western river projects, enabling unrestricted dam and barrage construction.

Suspension means India can now maximise water usage within Jammu and Kashmir, curtailing the unimpeded flow of these rivers into Pakistan. The Wular barrage represents the inaugural major initiative under this new paradigm.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah addressed the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, revealing coordination with the Centre on two key projects unfeasible under the treaty. Alongside the barrage, a lift water supply scheme from the Chenab River at Akhnoor will provide drinking water to Jammu city.

Abdullah noted that earlier Asian Development Bank funding for the Chenab scheme was derailed due to treaty constraints. With the IWT in abeyance, both projects are advancing rapidly.

Pakistan has reacted sharply, warning that any attempt to halt water flow would constitute an act of war. Despite this, India has accelerated multiple hydroelectric ventures on the Chenab, bypassing prior design and height clearances required under the treaty.

For locals, the barrage promises revival. Year-round Jhelum navigation would restore boating-based economies, while regulated storage could mitigate seasonal drying, bolstering fishing and aquatic harvests around Wular.

The project's revival underscores India's strategic pivot post-treaty suspension, prioritising domestic water security and infrastructure amid ongoing cross-border tensions. Completion could transform regional hydrology and livelihoods, though it risks escalating diplomatic frictions with Islamabad.

NDTV