Abstract:
Water is an essential aspect of human livelihood. It is also an important aspect of a country’s socio-economic developmental strategy for short-term and long term process. This developmental strategy includes multidimensional aspects from traditional to non-traditional security challenges that have a direct or indirect impact on national security strategy. India’s national security strategy towards water security is based on these aspects of traditional and non-traditional security challenges. This essay addresses the threat perception to India’s national security strategy with an emphasis on traditional and non-traditional security perspective. Emerging issues related to transboundary river water sharing with its neighbourhood and its impact on geopolitics and strategy are the innermost challenges for India’s security strategy. The essay is an attempt to argue the logic of issues that why India should be conscious about.
Introduction
Water is an essential aspect of human livelihood. It is also an important aspect of a country’s economic developmental strategy for short term and long term process. Economic and environmental security is intertwined factors in geopolitics and strategic interests of water security within a particular geographical region or nation-states. Food security, health security and economic security are the vital aspects that are determined on water security. Therefore, freshwater resources like river courses have been a core value for every country in their multipurpose developmental strategy. But, a huge demand for irrigation and agriculture cultivation, urbanization and industrialization, population growth and climate change has become challenging factors. Resultantly, the river courses in many continent and subcontinent have been a catalyst for political debate.
Water security in the contemporary world has become an emerging global issue. It is because of freshwater scarcity and growing environmental stress which may create conflict between and among the riparian states. Reducing the amount and quality of freshwater create the potential water-related conflict between and among the riparian states. For instance, several water-related conflicts have emerged in different subcontinents, such as Middle East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Northern Africa.(Vinogradov & Wouters, n.d.)
India in the subcontinent of South Asia has been ushered under the umbrella of trans boundary river water issues. Freshwater is a vital aspect for India for agriculture purposes towards the challenges of food security, health security and economic security strategy. Managing those challenges, India has been implementing several multipurpose dam-related projects over the Indus river, Ganga river, Brahmaputra river and other tributaries. But, the problems of over-exploitation through the dams and irrigation projects by the upper riparian states become a prominent challenge to India’s water security.
In the case of South Asia, the trans boundary river courses as mentioned above have been under a huge political debate between and among the riparian states. India as an upper riparian state of Bangladesh and Pakistan have been under huge critics as many dam-related projects have been constructed on the Ganga, Brahmaputra, Barak, and the Indus River basin respectively that affects the livelihood, environmental and food security.
China on the other hand is an upper riparian state of India over the Brahmaputra river that flows along the borders of India and Bangladesh. In this case, China is perceived as a serious threat to India’s water security as the dams constructed by China results in water scarcity in India, of course in Bangladesh as well.
Keeping those challenges over the trans boundary rivers, water has become an important aspect of India’s national security strategy. From traditional security dilemma to the non-traditional security challenges, India should have that consciousness for managing the transboundary river issues with the neighbouring countries.
This essay addresses the threat perception to India’s national security strategy with an emphasis on traditional and non-traditional security perspective. Emerging issues related to the transboundary river water sharing with those riparian states have become challenges to India’s national security as the issues have a direct impact on geopolitics and the strategic interest of maintaining its territorial integrity (traditional). These issues have also a direct linked with certain aspects of balancing socio-economic security, food and health security (Non-traditional).
India’s Water Security Strategic Interests
As we mentioned, India being an emerging power needs a huge resource like water for its energy security, food security, health, and economic security maintenance. Water has become a strategic aspect of India that several multi-projects have been implementing over the river courses like Indus, Ganga, Brahmaputra, Barak and other tributaries. The National River Linking Project is a good example the case of how India is planning to quest for energy resources for its developmental strategy.
Along with the National River Linking Project, India has been constructing many dams consisting of small, medium and large dams. Some of the medium and large dams remained the major interests of India towards national developmental strategy. The dams like the Farakka barrage; Tipaimukh Dam, Teesta Dam and other projects have become a prominent example of India’s strategy towards water security. The aims and objectives of constructions as the government of India is planning are primarily to meet sustainable water security with an emphasis on food, energy and economic development as a whole. The rapid population growth, urbanization and climate change are the challenging factors that affect India’s water security objective.
Water security, therefore, is seen as an important aspect of India in terms of food, energy and economic security development. The position of India as an upper riparian state except for China over the Brahmaputra River makes India’s interests more influential. This upper position over the major river basin such as the Indus River, the GBM, the Brahmaputra in the case of Bangladesh, including other tributaries like Teesta, Mahakali, Barak, etc. makes India richer towards water resources. But, a huge number of dam constructions have led to dramatic challenges in bilateral and multilateral relations between the riparian states that have become the issues in contemporary geopolitics of South Asia.
Traditional Security Dilemma and Water
Analyzing the trans boundary river issues in South Asia is tended towards the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna river water security challenges between India and its neighbouring countries such as China, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal. These issues may have a direct or indirect impact on the national strategy for territorial integrity. The traditional security dilemma to water security addresses these emerging challenges to the Trans boundary River between and among the riparian states which have a direct or indirect impact on state security maintain of territory and military security strategy. This section examines the threat perception emanating from water-related issues with the emphasis on the following case of water sharing diplomacy, conflict and disputes.
India and China Water Diplomacy
The analysis of transboundary river issues in South Asia ushers us to the water diplomacy and it often challenges between India and China. China being an emerging power demands water resources at a higher level compared to other riparian states in the region (South Asia). The water resource has been a strategic concern for China. To ensure energy and food security, China has an ambition of water resource management strategy. Chinese Twelfth Five-Year Plan (2011) and its water strategy for greater development assess this ambition. (Vishwanath, 2018a) Chinese water diversion strategy through the project for South-North Water Diversion Project is another factor in China’s national water security strategy.
The combination of all these factors has a direct impact on India’s water diplomacy towards the Brahmaputra River. The huge demand for China in its water diversion project for greater development strategy affects the development plans of India such as the National River Linking Project and likely to cause tension/conflict between the two countries. Concerning the negative impacts on flows and its implication for ecology reducing biodiversities and high fluctuation at the water level, India has raised the issue against the Chinese dam-related projects. (Vishwanath, 2018b)
Chinese attitude toward unilateral activities like the South-North water diversion project becomes the cause of potential water conflict. In addition, the unwillingness of China towards the treaty and agreement on water sharing has become an essential factor that fuels the tension between the two countries. China is one of the three countries to vote against the international law on the Convention of the Law of Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses(Biba, 2014).
Dealing with the growing tension, both countries should come forward for resolving the issue that assesses equal opportunities for both countries. India should have conscious about the water sharing issue as being the lower riparian state of China based on such reason. First, most of the South Asian Transboundary Rivers originate in the Tibetan Plateau which China has already controlled. Second; China being the upper riparian state can exercise unilaterally on the ground that both countries have achieved limited water-sharing agreements and treaties. Third; India and China could be hostile in relations because of an influence on their strategic interest as the Brahmaputra river originates in the region of Tibet and flows towards the very location which is strategic to both India and China, namely Arunachal Pradesh, where both countries have their contested territorial claims in these regions. (Basumatary, 2020) Therefore, the historical factors(Yasuda, et al., 2017) such as the hostile relations over the territorial dispute of Arunachal Pradesh including Ladhak and Sikkim have remained divergent factors in China-India water diplomacy.
India and other downstream countries
India and Pakistan have a long water issue over the Indus River water sharing. From the Ganga river dispute to the Indus River dispute, both countries have been under serious political tension over water sharing. After the independence of both countries in 1947, the Indus river basin had been an international river. Resultantly, India has become an upper riparian state of Pakistan where the six water-heads of the Indus river system was integrated with the Indian territory.
The World Bank mediated the issue and played a key role in conflict resolution for both countries. The Indus River Water treaty was signed in 1960 under the mediation of the World Bank by the two countries. However, the post-treaty dam-related projects have been the key challenges in reviving the tension. For instance, the Tulbul Navigation Project; Baglihar dam; Kishanganga Project; Uri-II Power Project and others have been the sources of tension.(Basumatary, 2021).
India should be dealt with Pakistan for the sustainable management and utilization of water sharing over the Indus river system. The existing India-Pakistan river water sharing issue has already been under a huge public debate, hence, politicized at national, international public debates. The issue between these two countries has already on the process of securitization. Pakistan claims that an expected release of water from the Indus River project as constructed by India is an act of war (Water Conflict Chronology Timeline List, n.d.). The water crisis in Pakistan is the main factor fueling the tension. The World Economic Forum rated Pakistan as the biggest risk of water crisis following terrorist attacks third on the list. The people from Shimla in India and Lahore in Pakistan protest due to the water crisis for their livelihood (Mangi et al., 2019).
All these concerns due to the water crisis, Pakistan has been raising against the Indian dams as the dam construction have been reducing the water in the territory. Therefore, the Indus River system has become the source of potential conflict between India and Pakistan. It is a direct threat to India as the political actors are concerned about the issue. The military spokesman of Pakistan, Major General Asif Ghafoor said that ‘Any future war that happens will be on these issues. He also suggests that We need to give it a lot of attention’ (Mangi et al., 2019).
Another problem is the water sharing over the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna river basin between India and Bangladesh. Over the last few decades, both countries have been under a potential conflict of water sharing mainly over the Ganga river, Barak river and Teesta river. Before the signing of the Ganga agreement in 1996, Bangladesh has been raising the issues at many international forums. For instance, Bangladesh raised the Ganges water issue meeting of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia seventh Islamic Foreign Ministers' Conference at Islamabad, Conference of the nonaligned countries at Colombo. (Hossain, 1998) The Ganga water treaty has resolved the issue after it was signed in 1996 for the last 30 years. At present, the Teesta issue and the Barak river issue have remained the major challenges for both countries.
In this regard, India should be dealing with the issues on the ground that Bangladesh has geostrategic importance for India. Bangladesh is a closed neighbourhood and very important for India’s neighbourhood policy. India’s Act East Policy is also determined by the geopolitics of Bangladesh. The maintenance of peace and security mainly the insurgency and migration has become very significant for India towards Bangladesh. Because the issues over the river sharing affect their bilateral relations. In addition, Bangladesh is also a member of China’s BRI project. China’s influence in South Asia worsens the situation in the case of both countries.
Non-Traditional Security Aspects of Water
Non-Traditional security challenges to India over the transboundary river water sharing issues include food security, economic security, health security, and ecological security. As the impact of water diversion projects and irrigation, these aspects of security have brought the riparian countries under the threats of these security aspects. Huge demand for freshwater for agriculture purposes to the maintenance of food security, the water has become national security challenge. In fact, economic security is also determined by its water security that has a direct link with food security. The environmental aspect of security is another significant aspect of national security challenges. A huge number of multipurpose dam-related projects have become security threats.
The security concern of India over the non-traditional security aspect combines these three aspects. Concerning human life and livelihood, water security has become national security challenge. The dam-related projects by the upper riparian state; China is the prominent threats to human life and livelihood in India. In fact, the direct impact stemming from floods and scarcity or crisis of water results in a huge number of human death and render landless and homeless. It is a serious concern for India over the Chinese projects that the dam construction would impact human life and livelihood including environmental security.
On the other hand, India being the upper riparian state of other countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh should also be conscious of the non-traditional security-related threats. The human migration from Bangladesh due to the water scarcity or flood in the region of Bangladesh has become the factor that impacts human livelihood in many parts of India. It has a direct or indirect impact on ethnic conflict, emergence of the insurgency-related crisis. For instance, the migration from Bangladesh has a huge impact on the emergence of such ethnic conflict and insurgency movement in Northeast India. Some scholar argues that the Bodo-Muslim ethnic conflict (2012) was caused by the Muslim migrant from Bangladesh.
Moreover, the issues related to dam constructions have resulted in human movement in Northeast India and the region of Bangladesh. Several civil society groups are protesting against the construction of dams like the Tipaimukh over the Barak River with the concerns of environment and displacement. It is claimed that around 311 sq.km lands would be submerged in India; out of which, 229 sq.km is a forest reserve and agricultural land.(Mehta, 2012) Resultantly, more than 60000 and 40000 native people will be displaced in the Indian state of Manipur and Bangladesh respectively. On the other hand, the location of this dam has become a potential earthquake zone that may result in the occurrence of major earthquakes. (Tipaimukh High Dam, n.d.)
In addition, the flows of migration also affect national policy or developmental policy. It has already affected India’s policy and resulted in negativity such as political instability. The National Registration Certificate (NRC) and Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) are good examples. All these challenges within Indian Union are directly or indirectly linked with the water sharing issues over the trans boundary river. Apart from that, non-traditional security-related threats have also emerged within India. For instance, the National River Linking Project has been under huge criticism or political debates that the project has a huge impact on human displacement and ecological balance. The impacts also result in huge debates in other downstream countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan. The project that might be the cause of the water crisis in the region, both countries have already objected to India over this national project concerning the displacement of people. It is estimated that around 100 million people will be affected directly in Bangladesh. (2015)
Conclusion: the Way Forward
Thus, water security and its challenges have become emerging national security threats as the national values are being determined by water. Water is an emerging security challenge because of its importance and usefulness in all-round developmental strategy. Even, this is more important in an agrarian economy as the economic development is determined by its freshwater in the country. The water security challenges particularly the scarcity or crisis that indirectly affects economic development and military capability.
In contemporary international or security studies including the peace and conflict studies, the water security-related issues are less prioritized aspects of national security as we compared to other aspects like military security. But, this is needed to be prioritized more and more in the contemporary world as we know that how water-related aspects range from silence or normative security to other critical security. It has a huge impact on economic security, social security and of course the military capability.
The issues related to water have become more challenging threats to national security especially in the developing world like South Asia. As we know the transboundary river water security challenges have become the geopolitical issues between and among the riparian states in South Asia. Therefore, the paper concludes that water security-related issues in the case of South Asia including China have become divergent issues in bilateral and multilateral relations. These issues may impact their ongoing military security challenges and intertwine the territorial dispute. Even, this is very significant that the countries like China, India and Pakistan being the nuclear power states are more vulnerable to water-related issues when the issues become more divergent over the territorial dispute.
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