India welcomes neutral expert ruling on Ratle, Kishanganga projects

India on Tuesday welcomed neutral expert's decision upholding New Delhi's stand that all seven questions that were referred to the neutral expert, in relation to the Kishenganga and Ratle hydroelectric projects, are differences falling within his competence under the Indus Water Treaty (IWT).

The World bank-appointed neutral expert issued a press release on January 20, 2025, on his competence to address certain issues related to the projects under the IWT. "India welcomes the decision given by the neutral expert under Paragraph 7 of Annexure F to the Indus Waters Treaty, 1960. The decision upholds and vindicates India's stand that all seven questions that were referred to the neutral expert, in relation to the Kishenganga and Ratle hydroelectric projects, are differences falling within his competence under the Treaty," according to the Ministry of External Affairs statement.

It has been India's consistent and principled position that the neutral expert alone has the competence under the IWT to decide these differences. Having upheld his own competence, which comports with India's view, the neutral expert will now proceed to the next (merits) phase of his proceeding. This phase will culminate in a final decision on the merits of each of the seven differences, the MEA informed.


"India will continue to participate in the neutral expert process so that the differences are resolved in a manner consistent with the provisions of the treaty, which does not provide for parallel proceedings on the same set of issues. For this reason, India does not recognise or participate in the illegally constituted Court of Arbitration proceedings," the MEA said. The Governments of India and Pakistan also remain in touch on the matter of modification and review of the Indus Waters Treaty, under Article XII (3) of the Treaty, according to the MEA statement.

In 2022, the World Bank appointed a neutral expert and a chairman of the Court of Arbitration regarding the Kishenganga and Ratle hydroelectric power plants, in view of disagreements and differences between the two countries over the 1960 Indus Water Treaty.

The treaty, signed after nine years of negotiations, with the World Bank being a signatory, sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries.