Teesta runs short of water

With no reciprocal framework for a water-sharing arrangement over 30 years , negotiations over the sharing of Teesta water cannot be , anyhow , said to be ‘ongoing’, and is indisputably stuck. The visible dilemmas Bangladesh suffers due to shortage of this river’s water on its part have been discussed with our neighbour many times. And now, once again, the alarmingly decreasing flow of river Teesta is hampering the operation of Teesta barrage and thus irrigation works of vast tracts of land in the country's arid northern region is dangerously exposed to threats of the lean period between December and April.
Much of the crux of the Teesta problem is being caused by our neighbour’s building of innumerable hydropower projects in Sikkim. Moreover, the upstream river flowing from Nepal is fast drying up as it enters Bangladesh, so much so – we received less than 500 cusecs of water during the lean seasons of the past three years (2014-16) because of unilateral withdrawal of water in the upstream by the Indian authorities for their hydroelectricity and irrigation projects. The received amount is at least eight times less than our required limit. 
The severe shortage of water has not only caused severe hardships to farmers and fishermen but also resulted in siltation of the river bed. Bangladesh being apparently  powerless in such deadlock needs a little more than just efficient water diplomacy. It needs the international community beside her. To sum the problem in a single sentence: the solution is not in our hands any longer because the water shortage crisis was never a mutual one and always one sided.
 When the former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Dhaka in 2011, both sides finalised an interim agreement on equal sharing of the Teesta water for 15 years. Unfortunately, it couldn’t be materialised for that country’s internal political disagreement between the centre and the state of West Bengal. Also during the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Dhaka on June last year, both the countries failed to resolve the most contentious bilateral problem.
Our most important ally during the Liberation War is somehow failing to acknowledge one of our crucial predicaments. We fail to understand why? However, the point we are trying to make at this point to one of our biggest friends, in terms of greater bilateral engagement and trade is that – why should Bangladesh be a clear geographical , monetary and environmental victim of an entirely internal political dispute and disagreement of another country?  
Water should never be a political issue between two countries. Lastly,   looking beyond the political rhetoric – both countries are in frantic need of Teesta water and we expect our Indian friends not to cause a crisis at the cost of another’s solution.

 

Teesta runs short of water

With no reciprocal framework for a water-sharing arrangement over 30 years , negotiations over the sharing of Teesta water cannot be , anyhow , said to be ongoing, and is indisputably stuck. The visible dilemmas Bangladesh suffers due to shortage of this rivers water on its part have been discussed with our neighbour many times. And now, once again, the alarmingly decreasing flow of river Teesta is hampering the operation of Teesta barrage and thus irrigation works of vast tracts of land in the countrys arid northern region is dangerously exposed to threats of the lean period between December and April. Much of the crux of the Teesta problem is being caused by our neighbours building of innumerable hydropower projects in Sikkim. Moreover, the upstream river flowing from Nepal is fast drying up as it enters Bangladesh, so much so we received less than 500 cusecs of water during the lean seasons of the past three years (2014-16) because of unilateral withdrawal of water in the upstream by the Indian authorities for their hydroelectricity and irrigation projects. The received amount is at least eight times less than our required limit. The severe shortage of water has not only caused severe hardships to farmers and fishermen but also resulted in siltation of the river bed. Bangladesh being apparently powerless in such deadlock needs a little more than just efficient water diplomacy. It needs the international community beside her. To sum the problem in a single sentence: the solution is not in our hands any longer because the water shortage crisis was never a mutual one and always one sided. When the former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Dhaka in 2011, both sides finalised an interim agreement on equal sharing of the Teesta water for 15 years. Unfortunately, it couldnt be materialised for that countrys internal political disagreement between the centre and the state of West Bengal. Also during the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Dhaka on June last year, both the countries failed to resolve the most contentious bilateral problem. Our most important ally during the Liberation War is somehow failing to acknowledge one of our crucial predicaments. We fail to understand why? However, the point we are trying to make at this point to one of our biggest friends, in terms of greater bilateral engagement and trade is that why should Bangladesh be a clear geographical , monetary and environmental victim of an entirely internal political dispute and disagreement of another country? Water should never be a political issue between two countries. Lastly, looking beyond the political rhetoric both countries are in frantic need of Teesta water and we expect our Indian friends not to cause a crisis at the cost of anotherssolution.