Establish a joint river commission

The recent establishment of a mega reservoir and hydro-electric project on the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra river by China in the upper catchment areas of Tibet is a warning sign for both India and Bangladesh sharing the middle and lower catchment areas respectively. This will have serious impacts on the water flow of transboundary river passing through Tibet, India and Bangladesh in the coming years and is going to severely reduce the local agricultural and hydro-electric productivity in North East India and Bangladesh. With such aggressive policies implemented in the upper catchment areas, it is important for both India and Bangladesh to seriously discuss with China a mechanism for establishing joint management of the river water. 

Unless this is dealt urgently by both nations, the economy of India and Bangladesh will suffer immensely in the not so distant future. It is necessary to establish a joint river commission among China, India and Bangladesh like the Mekong River Commission that is jointly managed by China, Burma Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

Saikat Kumar Basu
Canada