India issues fresh flood risk warnings to Pak amid heavy rain in northern states

New Delhi: India has issued fresh 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, 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 on Monday. "We issued another alert yesterday (Tuesday) and one today (Wednesday) of high probability of flooding in the Tawi river. The gates of some dams had to be opened due to excessive rains being witnessed in Indian regions," a source said.

The Tawi river originates in the Himalayas and passes through the Jammu division before joining the Chenab in Pakistan. India suspended the routine exchange of hydrological data with Pakistan under the Indus Waters Treaty after 26 people, mostly tourists, were killed in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam by Pakistan terrorists on April 22. Despite the suspension, the fresh flood warnings were communicated to avoid the loss of life and property across the border, the sources said. In Punjab, the Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers and seasonal rivulets are in spate because of heavy rainfall in their catchment areas. Jammu has also been pummelled by incessant rain, causing rivers to overflow. With water levels rising dangerously, authorities were left with no choice but to open the sluice gates of key reservoirs, according to the sources. Signed in 1960 and brokered by the World Bank, the Indus Waters Treaty has long governed the sharing of river waters between India and Pakistan.