India's Chenab‑Beas tunnel plan triggers Pakistan protest over treaty breach

Pakistan’s foreign ministry says India has issued a public tender for a Chenab‑Beas Link Tunnel that would divert about 1.9 million acre‑feet of water each year from the Chenab River into the Beas system. The Pakistani spokesperson, Tahir Andrabi, called the scheme a “grave violation” of the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, and broader international water‑law principles.

Pakistan also warned that India’s proposal to expand storage at the Salal Dam could give New Delhi undue control over river flows, further breaching treaty limits. Islamabad appealed to the international community to press India to halt any projects that could restrict or divert water allocated to Pakistan under the treaty. The dispute follows India’s decision last year to place the Indus Waters Treaty in “abeyance” amid heightened bilateral tensions after a terror attack in Pahalgam.