Revisiting the Politics of the Ganga Water Dispute between India and Bangladesh

Abstract

India and Bangladesh have signed the Ganga/Ganges River Water treaty in December 1996. The Ganga Water treaty is cited as one of the important examples of peaceful negotiations between upstream and downstream neighbours in South Asia. The present article revisits the Indo-Bangladesh Ganga Water politics and understands the political dynamics which led to the signing of the treaty between the two countries. The reading of the negotiation process since beginning to the present time suggests that though the technical nature of the problem remains the same, a change in domestic politics facilitates or obstructs the negotiation process. Since India and Bangladesh share another 53 rivers, it is important to learn a successful mechanism from the negotiation of 1996 which can be applied to other river issues. The article is based on primary as well as secondary sources.