Water in the World: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Access and Sustainability

Putting an End to the Great Water War

DIGS 220

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between the usage, availability, and ownership of flowing waters in the Kashmir region and the level of stability between India and Pakistan. The goal of this is to demonstrate that the mutual aid principal is the most logical approach to de-escalating the situation between the two countries and shall also promote the well-being of the general working class of people therein. The Kashmir Crisis has ingrained itself in the memory of the world like any longstanding violent conflict does; however, few people recognize the issue of sustainability in regards to usage and distribution of water in the region. Modern Kashmir is rich with 17 glaciers (of which the Siachen Glacier is the most prominent) providing virtually all of the region’s flowing waters and provide much of the water used in Pakistan’s agricultural industry. The glacial waters of Kashmir either solely or partially provide water for over 100 million persons and a source of income for half of those counted. The unsustainability of this conflict over the Kashmiri glacial waters can be seen in the polluting agents that are resultant of the proxy-wars fought between India and Pakistan as well as the industrial and ecotourism endeavors in the Republic of India. The reasons behind this crisis can be avoided by adhering more closely to treaties signed over the Kashmiri flowing waters as well as by newer ones listing out what may and may not be done in regards to potentially altering the pathways of water, as has been demonstrated at various periods of strife since 1987.