After IWT abeyance, Pak weaving threat narrative of 'what if China stops Brahmaputra flow': Himanta

Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday said that after India put the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) in abeyance, Pakistan is weaving a new "manufactured threat" narrative of what will happen if China stops Brahmaputra's flow into the country.

He clarified that though China has not announced any such move, but even if it happens, it would in fact help mitigate the annual Assam floods. He said that most of Brahmaputra's flow is generated due to downpour in northeast India while glacial melt and limited Tibetan rainfall contribute to only 30-35 per cent of the river's water flow.

In an X post titled ''What If China Stops Brahmaputra Water to India? A Response to Pakistan's New Scare Narrative'', he said, ''After India decisively moved away from the outdated Indus Waters Treaty, Pakistan is now spinning another manufactured threat: What if China stops the Brahmaputra's water to India?" ''Let's dismantle this myth -- not with fear, but with facts and national clarity," he added.

Sarma pointed out that even if China were to ''reduce water flow (unlikely as China has never threatened or indicated in any official forum), it may actually help India mitigate the annual floods in Assam, which displace lakhs and destroy livelihoods every year''.

''Meanwhile, Pakistan, which has exploited 74 years of preferential water access under the Indus Water Treaty, now panics as India rightfully reclaims its sovereign rights,'' he said.

Sarma claimed that Brahmaputra is a river that grows in India and does not shrink.

He pointed out that China contributes only 30-35 per cent of the Brahmaputra’s total flow -- mostly through glacial melt and limited Tibetan rainfall.

The remaining 65-70 per cent is ''generated within India, thanks to the torrential monsoon rainfall in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, and Meghalaya''.

Major tributaries like Subansiri, Lohit, Kameng, Manas, Dhansiri, Jia-Bharali, Kopili also contribute to it while additional inflow comes in from the Khasi, Garo, and Jaintia Hills via rivers such as Krishnai, Digaru, and Kulsi, Sarma said.

"At the India-China border (Tuting), the flow of the river is ~2,000-3,000 m³/s while in the plains of Assam like Guwahati, the flow swells to 15,000-20,000 m³/s during monsoon," he added.

The Brahmaputra is not a river India depends on upstream -- it is a rain-fed Indian river system, strengthened after entering Indian territory, Sarma said.

''Brahmaputra is not controlled by a single source -- it is powered by our geography, our monsoon, and our civilisational resilience,'' he added.