Dealing with the issue of Tipaimukh Dam
Sunday, 8 January 2012
M. A. Muid Khan in the first of a two-part article
"Guided by the principles of equity, fairness and no harm to either party both the Governments agree to conclude water sharing Treaties/ Agreements with regard to other common rivers".
(Article IX of the 1996 thirty-year Ganges Water Sharing Treaty)
By ignoring all bilateral agreements, international laws and conventions on the customary international law of Trans-boundary Rivers and Lakes, India has decided unilaterally to construct Tipaimukh Dam for so-called "hydro-electricity" on the Barak River in its north-eastern Manipur state; without considering the adverse effect the dam would have upon the environment and bio-diversity of the lower riparian Bangladesh. By taking this decision unilaterally, India has also violated her international obligation under the expressed provisions of the 1996 thirty-year Ganges Water Sharing Treaty signed by the heads of state of Bangladesh and India valid until 2026. India is under an international obligation to respect the provisions of this Treaty in the light of the 1969 Vienna Convention on The Law of Treaties, as it was signed by the heads of state of Bangladesh and India.
Question arises can Bangladesh restrain India from constructing the proposed Tipaimukh Dam on the Trans-boundary River Barak? In our opinion, if India wishes to construct proposed Tipaimukh Dam unilaterally in breach of the principles of equity, fairness and no harm policy to Bangladesh, then Bangladesh would be entitled to wage an international legal war against India before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to refrain India from constructing such a dam on the Barak River.
Therefore in this article an attempt would be made to clarify the possible adverse impact this dam would create upon the environment and bio-diversity of the lower riparian Bangladesh. It will also discuss the international legal rights and remedies available to Bangladesh under international law to wage an international legal war against India for justice.
India has decided to construct the proposed dam on the trans-boundary Barak River which flows between India and Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, it enters through Amalshid of Sylhet and becomes divided at Amalshid onto two branches and flows as the Surma River (right branch) and the Kushiara River (left branch). Both become united in Habiganj district and flow down as the Kalni River. The Kalni River joins with Ghorautra River near Bajitpur of Kishoreganj district to become the Meghna River. It then flows to the Padma River near Chandpur district and falls into the Bay of Bengal, constituting a big estuary in Bangladesh. This estuary is the spawning place of Hilsa and other fishes as well as marine lives. The estuary is a part and parcel of ecology of Bangladesh which cannot be measured in terms of money.
Despite the assurance given by the Indian Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh on September 08, 2011 at a Dhaka University Conference saying that, "I wish to make a public statement and make it clear that India will not take steps that will adversely affect Bangladesh", yet the Indian government betrayed their friendship with Bangladesh by signing an agreement on October 22, 2011 for forming a joint venture to construct the dam on the Barak River in Manipur to produce "so-called 1,500-MW Tipaimukh hydroelectric project" keeping Bangladesh in dark.
History will testify that India has never kept her promise before erecting any dams on the common rivers. Before constructing the Farakka Dam, India did not provide any information regarding it to the newly independent Bangladesh and constructed it, despite receiving strong protests against its construction from Bangladesh. India initiated bilateral talks with Bangladesh and signed a bilateral agreement only after the completion of the project when the government of newly independent state of Bangladesh took India before the International Court of Justice.
Experts opined that the proposed dam would be "a dangerous death trap" for Bangladesh as over 30 million people of the country and its biodiversity would face negative impacts for it. Many water experts in Bangladesh expressed that the construction of the dam on the Barak River is expected to dry up the flow of the Surma and Kushiyara, source of the Meghna River and would bring negative ecological and environmental changes in vast areas of Bangladesh. This would ultimately destroy the big estuary of Bangladesh - the spawning birth place of our national fish "Hilsa" and other fishes.
In a research paper titled "Hydrological Impact Study of Tipaimukh Dam of India on Bangladesh", published by the Institute of Water Modelling, Bangladesh, 2005, it was revealed that the erection of this dam would bring disaster to Bangladesh and "...cause long and short term effects of multiple dimensions - eco-hydrological, morphological, geological, biodiversity and environmental, climatic change and desertification, socio-economical, and finally political...".
The research paper at page 61 further stated that if India was allowed to erect the Tipaimukh dam, the average annual monsoon inflow from the Barak River at Amalshid to the Surma-Kushiyara River system would be reduced by around 10 per cent for the month of June, 23 per cent for July, 16 per cent for August and 15 per cent for September. The water level would fall by more than a metre on an average during the month of July at Amalshid station on the Kushiyara River, while this would be around 0.25 metre, 0.15 metre and 0.1 metre at Fenchuganj, Sherpur and Markuli stations respectively. On the other hand, at Kanairghat and Sylhet stations on the Surma River, the average water level would drop by 0.75 metre and 0.25 metre respectively during the same month. Moreover, flows in the month of July, August and September would be reduced by as much as 27 per cent, 16 per cent and 14 per cent respectively - 4.0 per cent, 2.0 per cent and 2.0 per cent higher than the volume reduction found for an average monsoon year".
It is also to be mentioned here that the proposed Tipaimukh Dam would be constructed by India at a place on the Barak River which is highly vulnerable to earthquake. "...If an earthquake of the magnitude 7.0 or above jolts the region..." Mr Akbar Ali Khan, an independent observer and a former advisor to the caretaker government, opined that, "...it would damage the dam causing the risks of flood in Sylhet region of Bangladesh".
In the past, many dams were damaged by earthquakes. Due to an earthquake in 1925, the Sheffield dam at Santa Barbara in the USA collapsed. In 2008, Japingo dam in China caved in due to an earthquake. The most serious threat to this dam arises from the possibility of overtopping of water from reservoir caused by unusually excessive rainfall during the flood season (Akbar Ali Khan, "The Proposed Tipaimukh Dam: Search for Eternal and Perpetual Interests of India and Bangladesh" in The Journal of Asiatic Society of Bangladesh, June 2010).
The writer is a Barrister of Lincoln's Inn and Qualified Legal Executive Lawyer of ILEX. He works as an Appeal Consultant & Practice Manager for Rest Harrow & Co Solicitor, Principal of EU Migration Services and an advocate of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. He can be reached at barristermuid@yahoo.co.uk
"Guided by the principles of equity, fairness and no harm to either party both the Governments agree to conclude water sharing Treaties/ Agreements with regard to other common rivers".
(Article IX of the 1996 thirty-year Ganges Water Sharing Treaty)
By ignoring all bilateral agreements, international laws and conventions on the customary international law of Trans-boundary Rivers and Lakes, India has decided unilaterally to construct Tipaimukh Dam for so-called "hydro-electricity" on the Barak River in its north-eastern Manipur state; without considering the adverse effect the dam would have upon the environment and bio-diversity of the lower riparian Bangladesh. By taking this decision unilaterally, India has also violated her international obligation under the expressed provisions of the 1996 thirty-year Ganges Water Sharing Treaty signed by the heads of state of Bangladesh and India valid until 2026. India is under an international obligation to respect the provisions of this Treaty in the light of the 1969 Vienna Convention on The Law of Treaties, as it was signed by the heads of state of Bangladesh and India.
Question arises can Bangladesh restrain India from constructing the proposed Tipaimukh Dam on the Trans-boundary River Barak? In our opinion, if India wishes to construct proposed Tipaimukh Dam unilaterally in breach of the principles of equity, fairness and no harm policy to Bangladesh, then Bangladesh would be entitled to wage an international legal war against India before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to refrain India from constructing such a dam on the Barak River.
Therefore in this article an attempt would be made to clarify the possible adverse impact this dam would create upon the environment and bio-diversity of the lower riparian Bangladesh. It will also discuss the international legal rights and remedies available to Bangladesh under international law to wage an international legal war against India for justice.
India has decided to construct the proposed dam on the trans-boundary Barak River which flows between India and Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, it enters through Amalshid of Sylhet and becomes divided at Amalshid onto two branches and flows as the Surma River (right branch) and the Kushiara River (left branch). Both become united in Habiganj district and flow down as the Kalni River. The Kalni River joins with Ghorautra River near Bajitpur of Kishoreganj district to become the Meghna River. It then flows to the Padma River near Chandpur district and falls into the Bay of Bengal, constituting a big estuary in Bangladesh. This estuary is the spawning place of Hilsa and other fishes as well as marine lives. The estuary is a part and parcel of ecology of Bangladesh which cannot be measured in terms of money.
Despite the assurance given by the Indian Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh on September 08, 2011 at a Dhaka University Conference saying that, "I wish to make a public statement and make it clear that India will not take steps that will adversely affect Bangladesh", yet the Indian government betrayed their friendship with Bangladesh by signing an agreement on October 22, 2011 for forming a joint venture to construct the dam on the Barak River in Manipur to produce "so-called 1,500-MW Tipaimukh hydroelectric project" keeping Bangladesh in dark.
History will testify that India has never kept her promise before erecting any dams on the common rivers. Before constructing the Farakka Dam, India did not provide any information regarding it to the newly independent Bangladesh and constructed it, despite receiving strong protests against its construction from Bangladesh. India initiated bilateral talks with Bangladesh and signed a bilateral agreement only after the completion of the project when the government of newly independent state of Bangladesh took India before the International Court of Justice.
Experts opined that the proposed dam would be "a dangerous death trap" for Bangladesh as over 30 million people of the country and its biodiversity would face negative impacts for it. Many water experts in Bangladesh expressed that the construction of the dam on the Barak River is expected to dry up the flow of the Surma and Kushiyara, source of the Meghna River and would bring negative ecological and environmental changes in vast areas of Bangladesh. This would ultimately destroy the big estuary of Bangladesh - the spawning birth place of our national fish "Hilsa" and other fishes.
In a research paper titled "Hydrological Impact Study of Tipaimukh Dam of India on Bangladesh", published by the Institute of Water Modelling, Bangladesh, 2005, it was revealed that the erection of this dam would bring disaster to Bangladesh and "...cause long and short term effects of multiple dimensions - eco-hydrological, morphological, geological, biodiversity and environmental, climatic change and desertification, socio-economical, and finally political...".
The research paper at page 61 further stated that if India was allowed to erect the Tipaimukh dam, the average annual monsoon inflow from the Barak River at Amalshid to the Surma-Kushiyara River system would be reduced by around 10 per cent for the month of June, 23 per cent for July, 16 per cent for August and 15 per cent for September. The water level would fall by more than a metre on an average during the month of July at Amalshid station on the Kushiyara River, while this would be around 0.25 metre, 0.15 metre and 0.1 metre at Fenchuganj, Sherpur and Markuli stations respectively. On the other hand, at Kanairghat and Sylhet stations on the Surma River, the average water level would drop by 0.75 metre and 0.25 metre respectively during the same month. Moreover, flows in the month of July, August and September would be reduced by as much as 27 per cent, 16 per cent and 14 per cent respectively - 4.0 per cent, 2.0 per cent and 2.0 per cent higher than the volume reduction found for an average monsoon year".
It is also to be mentioned here that the proposed Tipaimukh Dam would be constructed by India at a place on the Barak River which is highly vulnerable to earthquake. "...If an earthquake of the magnitude 7.0 or above jolts the region..." Mr Akbar Ali Khan, an independent observer and a former advisor to the caretaker government, opined that, "...it would damage the dam causing the risks of flood in Sylhet region of Bangladesh".
In the past, many dams were damaged by earthquakes. Due to an earthquake in 1925, the Sheffield dam at Santa Barbara in the USA collapsed. In 2008, Japingo dam in China caved in due to an earthquake. The most serious threat to this dam arises from the possibility of overtopping of water from reservoir caused by unusually excessive rainfall during the flood season (Akbar Ali Khan, "The Proposed Tipaimukh Dam: Search for Eternal and Perpetual Interests of India and Bangladesh" in The Journal of Asiatic Society of Bangladesh, June 2010).
The writer is a Barrister of Lincoln's Inn and Qualified Legal Executive Lawyer of ILEX. He works as an Appeal Consultant & Practice Manager for Rest Harrow & Co Solicitor, Principal of EU Migration Services and an advocate of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. He can be reached at barristermuid@yahoo.co.uk