Agriculture: The forgotten roadmap for water security

The 1991 Indus Water Apportionment Accord was a landmark agreement designed to ensure the fair distribution of Pakistan’s most precious resource — water. However, over time, discussions around the accord have become narrowly focused on Clause 2, which deals with water apportionment, while neglecting the broader, forward-looking provisions aimed at securing Pakistan’s water future. This agreement was never meant to be just a water distribution formula. It laid out a comprehensive vision for water management, addressing storage development, surplus distribution, ecological sustainability, provincial autonomy, and efficiency in water use. Unfortunately, delays in implementing key provisions — especially the construction of new reservoirs — have turned water allocation into a source of conflict rather than cooperation.