Third assembly held with impartial skilled in Vienna

• Pakistan, India made opening, rebuttal submissions.
• Events’ submissions on competence are actually full.
• Assembly was a part of the Vienna proceedings on tasks. 

ISLAMABAD: The third assembly on proceedings associated to the Ratle and Kishenganga hydroelectric crops mentioned the competence of the impartial skilled, The Information reported on Saturday. 

The assembly was a part of the Vienna proceedings involving Pakistan and India — initiated by the latter. 

As per the press launch issued by the Everlasting Court docket of Arbitration, Michel Lino, a impartial skilled appointed beneath the Indus Waters Treaty 1960, held the third assembly after written submissions have been made by groups of the neighbouring nations on the matter earlier in 2024.

“The third assembly involved the competence of the impartial skilled beneath paragraph 7 of annexure F to the Treaty,” the press launch stated. Every celebration made opening and rebuttal submissions on this event.

It stated the impartial skilled would proceed accordingly to arrange his resolution on competence beneath paragraph 7 of annexure F of Indus Waters Treaty.

Pakistan’s submissions have been made by its designated consultant Ahmad Irfan Aslam, counsel Sir Daniel Bethlehem KC, Professor Philippa Webb and Dr Cameron Miles. India’s submissions have been made by its designated consultant and secretary, Division of Water Assets, River Improvement & Ganga Rejuvenation, Ms Debashree Mukherjee, and its counsel, Harish Salve KC.

Pakistan was additionally represented by Secretary Ministry of Water Assets Syed Ali Murtaza, Indus Waters Commissioner Syed Muhammad Mehar Ali Shah, Director Basic South Asia of the Ministry of International Affairs Ilyas Mehmood Nizami, authorized advisor of the Ministry of International Affairs Assad Khan Burki, officers from the Embassy of Pakistan in Vienna Adeel Ahmed Khan and Hassan Abbas and Ms Laura Rees-Evans and counsel Abdullah Tariq.

The events’ submissions on the impartial skilled’s competence beneath paragraph 7 of annexure F to the Treaty are actually full.

India was additionally represented within the assembly by Kushvinder Vohra, ex-officio secretary and chairman, Central Water Fee (CWC); Ms Uma Shekhar, extra secretary, Ministry of Exterior Affairs (MEA); JP Singh, joint secretary, MEA; Darpan Talwar, its Indus Waters Commissioner; Vivek Tripathi, chief engineer, CWC; Sharvan Kumar, chief engineer (Hydro-Energy Planning & Investigation), Central Electrical energy Authority, Ministry of Energy (MoP); Ms Chitrangna Singh, director, MEA; Naveen Kumar, senior joint commissioner for Indus Waters; Narendra Singh Shekhawat and Samarth Agarwal, director of the CWC; Dr Kumar Abhijeet, authorized officer, MEA; Vishal Kumar Saini, government director and Shrish Dubey, basic supervisor of NHPC Ltd., MoP; Ms Nidhi Dhiman, first secretary of the Embassy of India in Vienna; Ms Chetna Rai and Anandh Venkataramani, counsel; and Prof GR Basson and Dr Kim Wium Olesen, technical consultants.

On October 13, 2022, the Worldwide Financial institution for Reconstruction and Improvement (World Financial institution), pursuant to Article IX and Annexure F of the Indus Waters Treaty 1960, and after session with every of the events, appointed Lino as a impartial skilled in proceedings commenced by India in opposition to the Pakistan in regards to the KHEP and the RHEP. 

The impartial skilled convened a primary assembly with the events on February 27-28 in 2023 on the headquarters of the Everlasting Court docket of Arbitration on the Peace Palace, in The Hague.

Following the primary assembly, the impartial skilled’s phrases of retainer have been fastened on Could 2, 2023. The phrases of retainer additionally recorded the appointment of Luc Deroo because the impartial skilled’s technical assistant. On June 1, 2023, the impartial skilled issued supplemental guidelines of process, together with a piece programme, which was subsequently revised on Aug 21, Oct 11 and Nov 2, 2023, and most lately on Could 29 and June 4, 2024.

On June 5, 2023, the PCA was appointed as registry and secretariat by the impartial skilled. The proceedings are administered by the Vienna Workplace of the PCA, in cooperation with its Mauritius Workplace. On August 31, 2023, India submitted its memorial.

A second assembly with the events was held on September 20-21 in 2023 on the Imperial Hofburg Palace in Vienna. Issues mentioned at that assembly included the organisation of the primary website go to, questions arising from India’s memorial, and amendments to the work programme for the proceedings.

Following the second assembly, Pakistan submitted its assertion beneath paragraph 7 of annexure F to the Treaty on Feb 1, 2024 and India submitted its paragraph 7 assertion and response to Pakistan’s paragraph 7 assertion on June 14, 2024.

From June 20 to twenty-eight, 2024, the impartial skilled carried out a website go to of the KHEP and the RHEP, preceded by a three-day preparatory go to by the technical assistant and a two-person engineering staff from every celebration.