- By Ajeet Kumar
- Fri, 05 Sep 2025 07:58 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Pakistan floods: Pakistan’s former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Friday again made an anti-India rant by saying “India has forgotten humanity this time” by not sharing data related to rivers. Continuing his false claim during his visit to the flood-affected regions in Kasur, Bilawal said the Modi government is not sharing data in violation of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT).
“This time India has forgotten humanity and is not sharing the data about river flows, we must unite, and we will continue to raise the violation of the IWT by India,” he claimed without sharing any concrete evidence. “We will force India to either follow the IWT or return the rivers allocated to it; either it has to follow the treaty or follow international law,” Bilawal continued.
Pakistan floods
Entire northwest India and Pakistan's Punjab province have been witnessing torrential rainfall since mid-August, resulting in almost all rivers and tributaries flowing over danger levels. The provincial government in Punjab had last week said that the unprecedented monsoon rains and the release of excess water from the Indian side swelled the three eastern rivers – the Sutlej, Ravi, and Chenab.
Fact check: Bhutto made false claims against India
Contrary to claims, India issued multiple alerts to Pakistan about the "high probability" of flooding in the Tawi river, with incessant rainfall in the northern states forcing the release of excess water from major dams, PTI sources said on Wednesday. The alerts, routed to Islamabad through the Ministry of External Affairs, were issued on "humanitarian grounds", the sources said. The first alert was issued last Monday.
What Pakistani water experts say about floods
India cannot be directly blamed for the devastating monsoon flooding in Pakistan this year, and the catastrophic rains have caused far greater destruction upstream of the border rather than in the country, hydrology experts explained on Wednesday. The experts, as quoted by a media report, suggested that contrary to the popular opinion, and even some officials' claims, that the devastating flooding in Pakistan was caused by the release of water by India, there is no proof of intentional action (by India).
When The Express Tribune spoke with experts to understand how dam water release works, they attributed multiple reasons for flooding. Dr Hassaan F Khan, an urban water expert at Tufts University, explained that every dam has two main systems: regular release gates and spillways. The regular gates are used for water supply needs, such as agriculture, and are considered normal releases. “But when a dam fills to its maximum capacity, water cannot be held back because of the risk of structural damage,” he said.
(With inputs from agencies)
