Rivers belong to everyone
IN 1997, the UN General Assembly adopted, for the first time on a global scale, legal norms on cooperative use of waters of trans-boundary rivers, known as the Convention on the Law of Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses. This is the global water law on international watercourses (trans-boundary rivers) for the use of non-navigational/consumptive uses.
River water is used in two ways: (a) non-consumptive and (b) consumptive. Navigation is a non-consumptive use of water because river water is not depleted. Consumptive use of water means withdrawal of water for various purposes, which reduces water in rivers and interferes with the natural flow.
The UN Law Convention is a document that was approved by the General Assembly in 1997. The 103 affirmative votes of the states show that the convention is generally accepted and indicates broad agreement.
The geographical and hydrological area within which the law of the convention is operative is defined by the term international watercourse -- "a system of surface waters and ground waters constituting by virtue of their physical relationship a unitary whole and normally flowing into a common terminus [...] parts of which are situated in different states" (Article 2(a),(b)).
This definition replaced the drainage basin concept of the Helsinki Rules of 1966. Instead, the states favoured an approach based on definitions which are used in earlier treaties and relate to the water channel of a river.
The salient features of the convention are, briefly:
It creates a legal framework for equitable utilisation of the waters of trans-boundary rivers;
It also calls for development, conservation, management and protection of international watercourses, and optimal and sustainable utilisation for the present and future generations;
It recognises relevant factors in equitable utilisation of waters, taking into account geographic, hydrographic, hydrological, climatic, ecological and other factors.
It requires co-riparian countries to exchange data and information on trans-boundary rivers;
It envisages co-riparian countries taking appropriate measures to prevent harm to other co-riparian states;
It affirms the importance of cooperation and good neighbourliness of all riparian states.
Bangladesh has 57 trans-boundary rivers, of which 54 are with India and 3 with Myanmar.
The water dispute with India is as old as the birth of Bangladesh. It started even before Bangladesh when India's ill-conceived Farakka Barrage on the Ganges was built to divert water for flushing silt from the Hoogly river, not for agriculture.
India has, without any agreement with Bangladesh, been constructing dams or diverting water from many trans-boundary rivers. India had reportedly disturbed or changed the natural flow of trans-boundary rivers by constructing spurs or embankments on the Muhuri, Chagalnaiya, Fulchari, Kachua and many others in Tripura. As a result, eight chars (islets) in the tributaries of Muhuri and Kachua were detected together with change in the flow of rivers, to the disadvantage of Bangladesh.
The Tipaimukh project on the Barak River is expected to dry up the flow of Surma and Kushiyara, the source of the Meghna, according to Bangladeshi water experts. However, it is good to note that India has invited Bangladesh experts to visit the Tipaimukh project to inspect the impact on Bangladesh.
Brahma Chellany, an Indian academic for strategic studies, wrote an article (International Herald Tribune, June 27, 2007) where he stated that China was attempting to dam or redirect flow of waters from the Tibetan plateau, including the Brahmaputra River.
According to the same writer, China's intensive farming need waters, and it is increasingly turning its attention to water reserves of the Tibetan plateau. China is presently planning inter-basin and inter-river water transfer projects, including re-routing the Brahmaputra waters.
Furthermore, several Chinese projects in west-central Tibet have a bearing on river-water flows into India but, according to the writer, China refuses to share information with India.
Being a lower riparian, Bangladesh is most vulnerable to unilateral withdrawal of waters of trans-boundary rivers by upper riparian countries. Bangladesh is also one of the top ten countries that would be seriously affected by climate change. It is feared that water shortages in much of South Asia will constitute a grave threat to economic development.
Given the above background, the 1997 UN Water Law Convention will provide a set of international norms for Bangladesh to cooperate with upper riparian countries (Nepal and India) for utilisation, development, management and adequate protection of flows of trans-boundary rivers. The water resources ministry may take the lead, on a priority basis in consultation with the foreign and law ministries, to examine and ratify the UN Law Convention.
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