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The Nepal-India Water Relationship: Challenges
Abstract
The concept of Indo-Nepal Power Exchange was first broached in BS2006 (AD1950) by the newly arrived ambassador of independent India, Chandreshwar Prasad Narain Singh (CPN Singh), during discussions with Mohun Shumshere, the last autocratic Rana Prime Minister of Nepal. Mohun Shumshere confided (Pande 1982) in CPN Singh of his Rs1.8 crore plan to generate electricity at 6 paisa per unit from the 22 MW1 Gaidakot hydropower-cum-irrigation project in Nawalpur/Nawalparasi by diverting the Kali Gandaki waters through a tunnel. The shrewd Indian ambassador advised Mohun Shumshere that he was making a big mistake as the Indian government was soon executing the large Kosi High Dam Project at Barahchhetra (incidentally inside Nepal) that would avail electricity at 2 paisa per unit for Nepal, North Bihar and Bengal. Mohun Shumshere swallowed this bait and roundly chided the 22 MW project initiators2 for ‘nearly wasting his Rs 2 crores on a useless project!’ Many Nepalese now believe that if this Gaidakot hydropower project of 1950 had been implemented, then this would have done what the 20 MW Chilime has done to the nation 50 years later—mobilise scarce local skills and resources.
... The geography of Nepal and India pushes both countries to engage in many spheres, including cultural, social, economic, and political. Given that all rivers in Nepal drain into India, water resources is an important issue, as well as a very sensitive one (Dhungel & Pun, 2009). Water is a scarce resource across many regions in the world including South Asia, which houses a large share of the world's population. ...
... Similarly, her neighbours would immensely benefit if this resource were harnessed in such a way that each of the cooperating countries could be in a win-win situation. Thus, these rivers, if properly harnessed, have the potential to substantially contribute to the socioeconomic development of not only the people of Nepal, but also millions of people living in the Gangetic belts of South Asia (Dhungel & Pun, 2009). Gaining meaningful insights into Indo-Nepal hydro-diplomacy is highly important for overcoming barriers to agreement on numerous water resources projects. ...
... There is hardly a river left over which Nepal and India have not reached an understanding. However, the relationship between the two countries has yet to satisfy the people of either country (Dhungel & Pun, 2009). Although hydropolitical relations between Nepal and India have been largely considered to be normal, and there have been developments, the progress of events has been far from satisfactory. ...
India and Nepal not only share common borders and cultures, but also share precious freshwater sources, i.e., rivers. Rivers have been discussed often in the political corridors because they cross international borders, which transform water reserves into a competitive resource and lead to hydropolitical dynamics between riparian countries. Nepal and India are two of the major riparian nations that share the mighty and complex Ganges Basin. The objective here was to study the more-than-a-century-old hydro-diplomacy between India and Nepal, passing through tumultuous political scenarios to understand how water relations have been shaped and reshaped with time. For this, a database of historical individual events/actions of water cooperation and conflict from 1874 to 2014 was compiled. These events/actions were ranked by intensity, using precise definitions of conflict and cooperation as suggested by the Transboundary Freshwater Dispute Database under the Basins at Risk project formulated at Oregon State University. Statistical analyses indicated cooperative events greatly outnumbered conflictive events. Out of 351 events, only 4% were conflictive, 92% were cooperative, and the remaining 4% were neutral. The study revealed an abundance of cooperative events; however, when seen through the lens of conflict-cooperation levels, the findings indicated a moderately positive cooperation, without much concrete action.
... After the Nepali Congress's ascendance to power, Nepal was moved with an interest in developmental programs, which included irrigation facilities and power supply and soil erosion. On the other, the primary interest of India at that time was control of flood hazards brought by Kosi; the same is also reflected in the sequence of wording in the preamble of the KPA 1954 (Pun, 2009). However, despite the entire burden of cost, approximately Rs. 450 million was given out by India, which was no less than a strenuous investment (Untawale, 1974). ...
This research looks at how floods are handled in the Kosi River, which goes through China's Tibet region, Nepal, and India, supporting the lives and livelihoods of millions of people in these countries. The emphasis is on the institutional framework and efforts and the plan of the Bihar government to reduce the ill impacts of floods. Drawing from global experiences in transboundary river flood control and considering the unique characteristics of the Kosi River, the study proposes measures that could enhance flood management. It is observed that due to its downstream location in the basin, India is particularly vulnerable to the devastating impacts of floods from the river. Approaches to flood mitigation is a combined approach that includes flood control structural elements and other systems such as transport, finance, and communication systems that can contribute to building up social resiliency.
... The climatic conditions varied drastically from alpine to subtropical with seasonal characteristics of hot, dry pre-monsoon, humid, precipitated monsoon and cold-dry postmonsoon (Bista, 2023;Karki et al., 2017). The Himalayan rivers in Nepal comprise three major basins, Karnali Basin, Gandaki Basin, and Koshi Basin, and other small river basins; Mahakali, Babai, Rapti, and Tinau from west to east respectively, and Bagmati in the center (Sharma et al., 2005) (Fig. 1), with an average of 45 % total flow to River Ganges in south, which can exceed over 70 % during monsoon season (Dhungel and Pun, 2009;Duncan et al., 2013). The Gandak and Koshi are tributaries to the Ganges whereas they are virtually the major rivers in Nepal with small and medium tributaries. ...
Rivers originating from the Himalayas play a crucial role as primary water sources for a significant proportion of the population in Asia downstream. This paper presents a comprehensive synthesis of hydrogeochemical data, incorporating major ions and trace elements from 153 papers spanning 2000 to 2023, with a detailed analysis of 20 papers specific to Nepal Himalayan rivers. To bridge the research gap due to sparse data, we aimed to enhance inclusivity by amalgamating both seasonal and one-time datasets, computing mean values for singular instances, and employing grand means for multiple seasonal data points. Our findings highlight varied research attention across different river basins, with the eastern Koshi Basin receiving extensive attention, while the middle Gandaki and Bagmati Basins garner moderate attention, and data scarcity observed in the western Karnali Basin. Predominant ionic composition, notably Ca2+ and HCO3-, reflect lithological influences, primarily driven by rock weathering. Although anthropogenic impacts remain minimal in most basins, certain lowland areas with higher population densities exhibit increasing significance. Trace element contamination, notably Cd, Cu, Sr, and Zn, poses ongoing threats, both from natural and anthropogenic sources. Water quality assessments conducted for agricultural and drinking suitability indicated good status, except in the densely polluted urban Bagmati stem. Health and ecological risks are low, as determined by pollution indices such as Pi, NPI, HI, and CI. The Bagmati River's middle segment, with high population density and moderate agricultural activity, shows pronounced anthropogenic footprints, while downstream areas exhibited greater impacts. Additionally, this article proposes the potential use of a Water Quality Index tool to comprehensively assess water quality across all parameters in Himalayan water bodies, providing a roadmap for future environmental conservation in the Himalayas. This pioneering review represents a significant effort to understand Himalayan rivers geochemistry on a large geographical scale and emphasizes the need for integrated observation and consideration of river water quality across the entire Himalayan region, from high mountains to lowlands.
Keywords: Hydro-geochemistry, Himalayan rivers, Water quality, Major ions, elements, Water Quality Index
... A humanitarian aspect should be applied to flood inundation studies, prevention, and mitigation measures. However, for issues related to political aspects, there should be bilateral understandings and follow international norms and laws respecting each other's sovereignty (Dhungel and Pun 2009). There should be joint flood-related information sharing, joint adaptation, and mitigation strategies and technologies. ...
Floods pose devastating effects on the resiliency of human and natural systems. flood risk management challenges are typically complicated in the transboundary river basin due to conflicting objectives between multiple countries, lack of systematic approaches to data monitoring and sharing, and limited collaboration in developing a unified system for hazard prediction and communication. An open-source, low-cost modeling framework that integrates open-source data and models can help improve our understanding of flood susceptibility and inform the design of equitable risk management strategies. This study integrates open-source datasets and machine -learning techniques to quantify flood susceptibility across the data-scare transboundary basin. The analysis focuses on the transboundary Gandak River Basin, spanning China, Nepal, and India, where damaging and recurring floods pose serious concern. flood susceptibility is assessed using four widely used machine learning techniques: Long-Short-Term-Memory, Random Forest, Artificial Neural Network, and Support Vector Machine. Our results exhibit the improved performance of Artificial Neural Network and Support Vector Machine in predicting flood susceptibility maps, revealing higher vulnerability in the southern plains. This study demonstrates that remote sensing and machine learning can improve flood prediction, hazard mapping, and susceptibility analysis in a data-scare environment.
... Located in the Himalayas, Nepal is a landlocked nation bordered by India on three sides and China on the other side. The region is characterized by diversity in terms of the biosphere, climate (arctic/ alpine to tropical), and landscape (lowland 72 m to the highest peak 8848 m above sea level) [1]. So far, it has no coal or petroleum resources of its own, and, as previously mentioned, the country has no access to the sea. ...
Global Solar Radiation (GSR) prediction models are critical to improve the dispatch, control, and stabilization of solar power, and to integrate solar energy into the electrical grid. GSR, especially on a short-term scale, can have important fluctuations, which may affect the total energy expected to be supplied to the grid. To overcome this issue prediction models with a high forecasting performance are needed. In this paper a novel framework based on Improved Complete Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition with Adaptive Noise (ICEEMDAN) and Deep Residual Network with Bidirectional long short-term memory, i.e., DRESNET model, is proposed for obtaining accurate multi-step ahead GSR predictions. To train the proposed ICEEMDAN-DRESNET hybrid model, minute-level daylight data from Energy Sector Management Assistance Program in Nepalgunj (mid-western Nepal) are used. The results demonstrate ICEEMDAN-DRESNET model is an excellent tool for short-term solar energy monitoring, yielding excellent predictions, in all metrics such as MAE 9.769 W/m², MAPE 5.657%, TIC 1.143, CPI 4.739, and TIC 0.023 for 5-min time-horizon predictions, improving the results from the benchmark models. As the forecasting time-horizon is increased, the ICEEMDAN-DRESNET model accuracy drops, with MAE 33.672 W/m²; MAPE 31.749% for 1-hr, MAE 22.625 W/m²; MAPE 18.312% (30-min) and MAE 14.897 W/m²; MAPE 10.358% (15-min), also better than the benchmark models. The results confirm the competitive merit of ICEEMDAN and DRESNET integration to improve deep learning and the potential of proposed model for monitoring solar or other renewable (e.g., wind or solar) energies.
... Located in the Himalayas, Nepal is a landlocked nation bordered by India on three sides and China on the other side. The region is characterized by diversity in terms of the biosphere, climate (arctic/ alpine to tropical), and landscape (lowland 72 m to the highest peak 8848 m above sea level) [1]. So far, it has no coal or petroleum resources of its own, and, as previously mentioned, the country has no access to the sea. ...
... The availability of water resources is conditioned by a prevailing development context (Figure 1). Key factors in the development context include the ecological characteristics of basins and socio-economic structural conditions, e.g., the effects of caste, culture and power relations (see the preceding section; see also Akhter, 2016;Dhungel & Pun, 2009;Emerson & Nabatchi, 2015;Gilmartin, 2020). Access to water is mediated by formal and informal institutions, existing infrastructure and actors. ...
We develop a conceptual framework to understand linkages between water access and livelihood outcomes. We apply the framework to assess factors altering the likelihood of household indebtedness in rural Nepal, using survey data and probit statistical models. Controlling for different household characteristics, results show that in Nepal’s Kamala basin, an additional month of water adequate to sustain crops decreases by 5% the likelihood that an average household in our sample reports high indebtedness. We complement our findings by discussing interacting drivers of agricultural livelihood outcomes; options to improve water availability and access; and geographical targeting of investment in water access.
... Such mindset allows Indian imperialist monopoly over Nepal's water resources. As a result, the construction of the barrage and allied structures between 198 and 1990 eroded (Dhungel and Santa 2009). Every year, when the water level in Sharda Barrage rises, water is released to avoid the burst of the dam. ...
... As a result, the construction of the barrage and allied structures between 1983 and 1990 eroded 9780367699796_C009.indd 168 05-03-2021 07:53:54 about 0.36 square kilometre of land in Nepal (Dhungel and Santa 2009). Every year, when the water level in Sharda Barrage rises, water is released to avoid the burst of the dam. ...
... It is a flood control sluice across the Koshi River in Nepal betweenNepal-India border. The Kosi Treaty 1954 (revised in 1966) and the Gandak Treaty 1959 (amended in 1964 are important treaties behind construction of this Barrage(Dhungel & Pun 2009).The purpose of this Barrage was for flood control, irrigation and hydropower generation. The Koshi barrage has a discharge capacity of 2869 m 3 /s(Baral 2009). ...
The Koshi River is a trans-boundary river originating from the high Himalayas and the Tibetan plateau and then flows through Eastern side of Nepal, reaching the southern plains of Nepal and India and finally meets the Ganges river in India (Baral 2009). Its seven tributaries -- the Sun Koshi, Indrawati, Dudh, Tama, Likhu, Arun, and Tamor – give it the name Sapta Koshi or „seven-rivers‟. The three largest tributaries, the Sun, Arun, and Tamor, join at Tribeni, where the Sapta Koshi turns south and flows through the Barahkshetra gorge for about 15 km before reaching Chatara in the Terai(Bista 2014). After flowing through the lowland Terai region of Nepal enclosed in embankments, the river flows over the Koshi barrage and enters North Bihar of India.
... Similarly, in developing the waters of the Ganges River, sequential governments of basin hegemon India have countered Nepalese proposals of joint water development schemes through a mix of diplomatic negotiations and the compilation of scientific data of their preferred projects (see e.g. Dhungel 2009;Gyawali 2001). The hegemon also has at its disposal more integrative methods to maintain or enforce a transboundary arrangement. ...
... In 1874 during the last years of Junga Bahadur Rana, Nepal and British-India concluded probably the first agreement on the use of waters from the three Sagars 2 (Jamuwa, Siswa and Marthi) straddling the Nepal-India border in Kapilvastu district (Dhungel and Pun, 2009). Bir Shumsher introduced piped drinking water for the first time in Kathmandu in 1891 (Dixit, 2002). ...
... Greater visibility, transparency, and participation are often associated with outcomes that are more just. However, some treaties mandating water allocation between GBM nations have also been questioned in terms of their equity (Dhungel & Pun, 2009), indicating that the realization of a treaty does not necessarily guarantee outcomes that are considered equitable by all parties. Envisaging a treaty as a means to greater cooperation and enhanced future equity (e.g. ...
Principles of equitable and reasonable use underpin international water agreements. Despite the potential for hydrologic information to enhance resilience to extreme events, comparable application of just principles to the distribution of hydrometeorological data is poorly established. Within the Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna (GBM) river basin, we find that water allocation agreements are codified into Treaties or Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs). Analogous decisions regarding hydrometeorological data sharing are often internalized at the level of river basin organizations and are not upheld as MoUs. This institutional structure provides extremely limited data to the most downstream nation of Bangladesh. Available precipitation and discharge stations are well below the minimum densities recommended by the World Meteorological Organization. Forecasters in Bangladesh therefore contend with vast areas of geopolitically ungauged catchment, precluding the application of basin-wide modelling approaches driven by observed data. Thus, capacity for increasing resilience to extreme events within Bangladesh is obstructed, demonstrating the potential for perceived injustice related to distribution of hydrometeorological data. Consensus that water is a human right warrants the application of equity to water allocation. But is security from water-related disasters also a human right? As hydrometeorological data can be a powerful resource with potential to profoundly affect lives and livelihoods, enhanced awareness of justice related to data sharing is needed.
... The project is the largest irrigation system in Nepal and was designed to irrigate 66,000 hectares (Fish et al. 1986). In India, the total command area which receives water for irrigation from the Kosi barrage is about 969,110 hectares (Dhungel 2009 The Koshi Tappu was also declared as a Ramsar site, a wetland of international significance in 1978. ...
The glacierised mountain catchments of the Himalayan region serve lives and livelihoods for millions of people living downstream. When water (or streamflow) flows from headwaters to floodplains, the water resources are widely utilised for many activities such as agriculture, drinking water, and hydropower. The activities and processes (such as land-use change and snow and glacier melt) in upstream areas affect the spatial and temporal distribution of water resources to downstream regions. In the context of climate change, the hydrological regime of the Himalayan river systems is likely to be affected which might change the water availability for downstream people. The understanding of the hydrological dynamics is crucial for sustainable planning and management of water resources of the Himalayan region. However, the lack of hydro-meteorological data in the region, especially in high-altitude areas, hinders the process of understanding the system dynamics. In this context, the present study is intended to analyse the upstream-downstream linkages of hydrological dynamics in the Kosi river basin of the Himalayan region. The study attempted to understand the hydrological system dynamics of the Kosi river basin using the process oriented and distributed hydrological model. Similarly, the model application also enables to understand the impact of land-use and climate change on hydrological regime. The understanding of process characteristics of precipitation and runoff generation derived from the modelling application was instrumental in recognising the upstream-downstream relationship.
... Similarly, in developing the waters of the Ganges River, sequential governments of basin hegemon India have countered Nepalese proposals of joint water development schemes through a mix of diplomatic negotiations and the compilation of scientific data of their preferred projects (see e.g. Dhungel 2009; Gyawali 2001). The hegemon also has at its disposal more integrative methods to maintain or enforce a transboundary arrangement. ...
This paper seeks to broaden the analysis of transboundary water interaction, by examining and interpreting the influence of
‘soft’ power therein. The ‘soft’ power of persuasion is understood to be exercised through discursive and to a lesser extent
ideational means, and is interpreted in terms of compliance related to distributive (conflictual) or integrative (consensual)
ends (after Scott (1994)). The focus is on inter-state water conflicts in hegemonic political contexts, where, it is found, the ‘first among equals’
has a greater ability to exploit ‘soft’ power and to determine the outcome. ‘Soft’ power is also seen to influence the choices
states make or avoid in their transboundary water interaction, which explains in part how treaties intending to manage conflict
may in fact delay or perpetuate it. For example, ‘soft’ power can be used by the basin hegemon to frame inequitable forms
of cooperation in a cooperative light, such that unfair and ultimately unsustainable transboundary arrangements are replicated
by the international donor community. Non-hegemonic riparian states also employ their capacity of ‘soft’ power, though may
find themselves with little choice other than to comply with the arrangement established by the basin hegemon. The findings
stress the importance of analysts questioning claims of interaction promoted as ‘cooperative’, and of examining the ‘soft’
power plays that underlie all transboundary water arrangements. Exemplification is provided through transboundary river basins
and aquifers around the globe.
KeywordsWater conflict–Water cooperation–Hydro-hegemony–Hydropolitics–Power–Soft power–Nile Basin Initiative
... Nevertheless, EIA provisions have been included in development policies since the 1980s (Bhatta and Khanal 2009). This study reports on plant species diversity and provides a comprehensive list of plants used by indigenous people living inside the impact area of a projected hydropower site in Western Nepal (Dhungel and Pun 2009). Specific actions are discussed, and species are identified for sustainable use programs. ...
A survey of plant biodiversity and ethnobotany was conducted along the Seti river banks in the Tanahun district of Western Nepal. This area, home of the Magar ethnic group, will be impacted by a major hydropower project, currently under feasibility study. The objective of the study was to document plant biodiversity and ethnobotany in order to suggest appropriate conservation and management strategies.
Botanical sampling was conducted inside quadrats and along transects. A total of 221 plant species were recorded in the study area, distributed as herbs (80 species), trees (68), shrubs (28), climbers (19), pteridophytes (18), lianas (5), and epiphytes (3). Twelve of the inventoried species figure in one or more conservation categories identified by various national or international agencies. Group discussions and personal interviews allowed to find out that 43% of the species were ethnobotanically important for the local people and that most were used as medicine, food, or timber. We propose specific species for sustainable use programs based on certain criteria. The area is very important in terms of plant biodiversity and ethnobotany, and hence, immediate implementation of conservation measures is recommended to maintain the high social, ecological and economic values of the area.
Keywords: Conservation and management; Magar ethnic group; Non-timber forest products; Nepal; Species diversity
The culturally and ecologically diverse region of the Eastern Himalayas is the target of ambitious
hydropower development plans. Policy discourses at national and international levels position this
development as synergistically positive: it combines the production of clean energy to fuel
economic growth at regional and national levels with initiatives to lift poor mountain communities
out of poverty. Different from hydropower development in the 20th century in which development
agencies and banks were important players, contemporary initiatives importantly rely on the
involvement of private actors, with a prominent role of the private finance sector. This implies
that hydropower development is not only financially viable but also understood as highly
profitable. This paper examines the new development of hydropower in the Eastern Himalaya of Nepal
and India. It questions its framing as green energy, interrogates its links with climate change,
and examines its potential for investment and capital accumulation. To do this, we also review
the evidence on the extent to which its construction and operation may modify existing
hydrogeological processes and ecosystems, as well as its impacts on the livelihoods of diverse
groups of people that depend on these. The paper concludes that hydropower development in the
region is characterised by inherent contentions and uncertainties, refuting the idea that dams
constitute development projects whose impacts can be simply predicted, controlled and
mitigated. Indeed, in a highly complex geological, ecological, cultural and political context that
is widely regarded to be especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change, hydropower as
a development strategy makes for a toxic cocktail.
India, which has four important international rivers, has experienced numerous water resource related conflicts with its four neighboring countries. To resolve conflicts, countries have respectively concluded bilateral agreements by signing treaties or political memoranda. Furthermore, they have established permanent joint organizations and facilities for exchange of data and for river inspections. This report presents analysis of the implementation of purposes and obligations prescribed in those agreements, which previous studies have not sufficiently addressed. Furthermore, few comparative studies have examined the four rivers in India. Recent disclosure of data and proceedings can support such analyses. India and Pakistan have formed a trusteeship with exchange of data and with joint inspections of the Indus River, even during wartime. India and China have cooperated and signed a Memorandum of Understanding related to the Brahmaputra River. Nevertheless, agreements related to the Ganges and the Mahakali rivers have not been implemented because of insufficient funds and feasibility studies. Exploration of the similarities and differences of implementation status of past agreements related to international rivers is necessary to mitigate future water resource related conflicts among nations.
Almost all aspects of climatic patterns are affected by rising level of Greenhouse gases (GHGs) and increasing anthropogenic activities. Change in climate is observed and studied by various researchers. In this article, the present and future effects of climate change on precipitation, temperature, flood events and droughts are discussed in the form of case studies. Significant rising trends in observed temperature are found in some parts Ganga basin. Future trends of temperature and precipitation also shows rising trend in entire Ganga basin. Rajasthan, a semi-arid hot zone, receives lesser rainfall and more prone to droughts. Historical and future trends of Standard precipitation index (SPI), which is a drought index, are also discussed in this study. It is seen that, overall there will be less severe droughts based on annual and monsoon months, but Northern and Western part of Rajasthan will be prone to more sever droughts. Rising level of CO 2 emission is major contributor to the global warming. To keep the global warming lesser than 2 • C than pre-industrial time, carbon capture and storage (CCS) is only feasible solution. Maintaining the sustainability of the water resources is of prime importance because (i) due to the rising temperature, the available water resources will decline in the long term and (ii) water requirements will increase due to the growing population and economic advancements. This article also discusses the considerations and components of sustainable water resource management highlighting the approaches employed for managing agricultural water which is a major shareholder in the consumption of water resources.
The culturally and ecologically diverse region of the Eastern Himalayas is the target of ambitious hydropower development plans. Policy discourses at national and international levels position this development as synergistically positive: it combines the production of clean energy to fuel economic growth at regional and national levels with initiatives to lift poor mountain communities out of poverty. Different from hydropower development in the 20th century in which development agencies and banks were important players, contemporary initiatives importantly rely on the involvement of private actors, with a prominent role of the private finance sector. This implies that hydropower development is not only financially viable but also understood as highly profitable. This paper examines the new development of hydropower in the Eastern Himalayas of Nepal and India. It questions its framing as green energy, interrogates its links with climate change, and examines its potential for investment and capital accumulation. To do this, we also review the evidence on the extent to which its construction and operation may modify existing hydrogeological processes and ecosystems, as well as its impacts on the livelihoods of diverse groups of people that depend on these. The paper concludes that hydropower development in the region is characterized by inherent contentions and uncertainties, refuting the idea that dams constitute development projects whose impacts can be simply predicted, controlled and mitigated. Indeed, in a highly complex geological, ecological, cultural and political context that is widely regarded to be especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change, hydropower as a development strategy makes for a toxic cocktail.
This paper examines the ways in which environmental threats are socially constructed and the implications of such environmental securitisation. Specifically, the paper focuses on the issue of river development and water allocation between states of international transboundary river basins. Building on recent studies that attempt to refine securitisation theory of the Copenhagen School and applying hydropolitical power analysis, the paper takes a sociological understanding of the securitisation of shared waters. Using the case study of the Tanakpur Barrage project on the Mahakali River between Nepal and India in the Ganges River basin, it shows how securitisation discourse framed the shared river as a threat that posed detrimental flooding to both territories. It is argued that the Indian government effectively used its technical and institutional expertise to frame the discourse. Hydropolitical power analysis helps explain how compliance to the project agreement – a necessary measure to avert hydrological crisis, as argued by the Indian government – was gained from the Nepali government. The implications of securitising shared rivers on water resources management and basin-wide governance are discussed.
Contested since 1990, the Arun-3 dam in Nepal has so far generated more heat than hydropower involving a host of complex negotiations between its advocates and critics on the local, national and transnational levels. Cancelled after a complaint before the World Bank Inspection Panel in 1995, work is soon to be resumed. An Indian public sector company interested in exporting the electricity to India will finance it. This paper focuses on how local communities have experienced the decade-long uncertainties concerning the project and the approach road to be built. Their hopes of access to markets, electrification and a modern lifestyle will be explored in the context of an understanding of development as a desiring machine and governmentality studies. I will argue for a parallel application of the two approaches to conceptualize the entanglement of desires for development and a deep sense of local powerlessness vis-a-vis external actors.
Keywords: Nepal; hydropower; development; governmentality; desire
The worldwide paradigm shift in river basin management has not affected policymakers in south Asia. Hydro-diplomacy in the Ganges-Brahmaputra- Meghna basin is still based on reductionist engineering, and looks at marginal economic benefits, without showing any concern for the long-run implications for livelihoods and ecosystem. The governments in the river basin are already facing the challenge of extreme poverty, despite the countries experiencing high levels of precipitation. This paper discusses the lacunae of the reductionist engineering paradigm, and stresses the need for a holistic framework in ecological engineering and for hydro-diplomacy in the basin. This framework is based on a new transdisciplinary knowledge base created by the emerging science of eco-hydrology, economics, and new institutional theories.
The purpose of this paper is to furnish a brief review of the contemporary Canadian scene with respect to inter-basin water transfer. It begins with a description of the magnitude and major uses of Canada's water resources and then moves on to an examination of the nature and extent of water transfers in various parts of the country. It continues with a discussion of proposals for future diversions within Canada and to the United States. The broad features of various projects are outlined as well as the public reactions that have been expressed to date. The paper concludes with an examination of questions that will need to be answered if a rational approach to inter basin diversions is to be developed. (from paper)
The spatial distribution of water and land resources in China, as in most countries, is very uneven. There is more water but less arable land in the south and vice versa in the north. With rapid development of agriculture and industry, the problem of water shortage is becoming more and more serious, especially in the large cities of North China such as Tianjin, where water available for industrial and domestic requirements is very inadeqate. The issue of water transfer from south to north has been of great interest to many engineers and scientists in recent years. This paper mainly deals with water transfer schemes in China, particularly with the East Route Project and its First-Stage Project. Refs.
With increased upstream withdrawal of Ganga waters for irrigation and urban industrial uses, Ganga's dry season flow is declining.
The heavily populated but marginalised north Indian State of Bihar with its capital at Patna expects the Union government
in Delhi to curb the appetite of upstream States; but Delhi's water bureaucracy, having grown within a culture of ‘construction’
rather than ‘water management’, is reluctant to do so. Adding to Patna's anxiety is a new fear in the form of the 1996 Farakka
Treaty between India and Bangladesh, an international obligation that Patna fears will further curtail its water rights. Delhi,
however, is able to placate Patna with promises of a Kosi High Dam in Nepal on the major tributary of the Ganga closest to
Bihar. Because both bureaucracies belong to a social solidarity of hierarchic procedures that would make similar technological
choices, Patna is pacified. On the other hand, activist groups in Bihar belonging to a different solidarity, that of egalitarian
equity, point to the dismal consequences of past technological choices (embankments) on the land and its poor and continue
to oppose this new choice as well. The hierarchic discourse between Patna and Delhi, however, filters out this activist critique
and pursues a business-as-usual program of new high dam construction. The purpose of this paper is to examine the institutional
background behind such rigid, single-mission policies and the costly surprises and impasse they are prone to. The paper argues
that sagaciously providing space for constructive engagement among differing perspectives of the state, market and civil society
on Bihar's water problems may minimize this risk.