IWT violations put trout population under heightening danger in Azad Kashmir, KP

As sunrays bathe the house of progressive fish trader Riaz Khan on the banks of the River Kabul in Nowshera district, he starts a pickup to transport fish meat to the different marriage halls of Peshawar division

PESHAWAR, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 30th Apr, 2026) As sunrays bathe the house of progressive fish trader Riaz Khan on the banks of the River Kabul in Nowshera district, he starts a pickup to transport fish meat to the different marriage halls of Peshawar division.

“On every Sunday, we received stock of different fish varieties, including the expensive trout species from Swat and Azad Kashmir on the consumers’ demands, especially for the wedding season due to better profit margin than poultry products,” said 64-year-old Riaz, an inter-provincial fish trader of Nowshera, told APP on Thursday.

Showing great concerns over the illegal abeyance of Indus Water Treaty (IWT) by India in April last year and its negative effects on trout farming, especially in Azad Kashmir, KP, and Punjab province, Riaz said that unrestricted cold water was essential for trout farming, fearing that its population is likely to be affected if IWT violations continued.

He said the populations of rainbow and brown trout, mostly found in Neleem Valley of Azad Kashmir, Ghazir, Skardu in Gilgit Baltistan, and Kaghan, Naran in Mansehra, are likely to be affected. Azad Kashmir is a premier destination for trout fishing, featuring both expansive rainbow and brown trout introduced by the British in the early 20th century. It was mostly thriving in cold, pristine, snow-fed streams, besides a key tourist attraction and economic activity for the region.

He feared the vanishing population of these trout in Azad Kashmir due to the restriction of water flow in the western rivers. Khalil said that if the water of western rivers becomes uncertain, how will people associated with the fish trade survive?” he asks with worry.

Like Raiz Khan, thousands of people are associated with the fish trade in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa who rely on Kashmir’s trout and carp fish for the fulfilment of consumers’ demands, especially during the wedding season.

Iftikhar Khalil, former director of the fisheries department KP, told APP that illegal abeyance of IWT by the RSS backed Hinduvata regime has put fish populations at high risk in Azad Kashmir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Punjab. He said such illegal acts by India have created human rights issues, which are likely to expose millions of people to starvation and hunger in Pakistan. This will also lead to stunted children and malnourishment to pregnant mothers.

He said that Azad Kashmir’s trout largely depend on the smooth flow of western rivers, mostly emanating from glaciers

melt during summer, and its population will face life threats if the water is either reduced or polluted.

Khalil said Pakistan earns substantial revenue from trout and other fish exports to China, Thailand, Vietnam, UAE, Korea, and Japan, fearing that the rural economy in Azad Kashmir and Punjab will suffer if IWT violations are sustained.

In Pakistan, he said the total fish production was estimated at approximately 790,000 tonnes. This includes about 0.51 million tonnes from marine capture and 0.28 million tonnes from inland sources, including aquaculture, with the sector contributing 0.31% to national GDP and employing nearly one million people.

The trout population in Azad Kashmir largely relied on the restoration of the historic agreement of IWT was signed in 1960 between then President Ayub Khan and Indian PM Jawaharlal Nehru.

The treaty had long been seen as a rare pillar of cooperation between the two countries.

The experts warned that its weakening for political mileage could ripple through every layer of life, such as from agricultural crops, orchards, and fisheries to the energy and food industry, besides affecting living creatures.

“This is about food, not just water for millions of Pakistanis,” Professor Dr Naveed Farooq at the University of Mardan said. “Nearly 80 percent of Pakistan’s agriculture depends on the Indus basin, and India has no right to suspend or hold it in abeyance unilaterally after a clear ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ),” he said.

“India lost all legal battles and was left with no choice but to restore IWT,” he said. “If water flows become irregular, trout lakes and agriculture crop yields could fall sharply by as much as 40 percent in the worst cases, leading to a reign of starvation and hunger.”

Besides many trout and carp fish lakes, agriculture fields that once yielded wheat, sugarcane, rice, and vegetables are likely to become barren in KP, Azad Kashmir, and Punjab, exposing millions of people to hunger and starvation, with chances of mass migrations for water to other places.

Likewise, orchards of citrus, bananas, watermelon, mangoes, and peaches across KP, Sindh, Punjab, and Azad Kashmir may wither. For farmers, beekeepers, and fishermen who were already battling rising costs in KP, even a small disruption in water flow can mean the difference between survival and debt.

Dr Naveed sees the deepening water crisis extending far beyond rivers and trout farms if IWT violations continue in future. He said the water crisis amid IWT violations was even more immediate, that will have very negative effects on fisheries, livestock, and agriculture sector in KP, Azad Kashmir, Sindh, and Punjab that largely depend on the Indus Basin.

“Trout cannot survive on uncertain and polluted water,” he reiterated, adding, “If water flows of Indus, Jehlum, or Chanab are restricted or polluted, breeding cycles of trout population may collapse quickly, and its race is likely to become extinct.”

Moreover, he said cold water species like brown trout are mostly thriving in the Neelum River Azad Kashmir, largely dependent on precise temperatures and steady water flows. A sudden drop or surge can wipe them out entirely. “In lower regions of KP, such as Charsadda, Nowshera, and Peshawar, species like Mahseer are also at risk, apparently due to water pollution. “Disrupt one river, and you destabilize the entire ecological chain,” Dr Naveed warned.

“This is not just a food resource or diplomatic issue but a food security crisis in the making, and is turning IWT violations as a serious human rights issue,” he warned. The World Bank has granted a guarantee for IWT, and it was now a test case for the World Bank to force Indian Govt to reverse its illegal decision.

He said that India was using water as a weapon against Pakistan and such illegal acts were tantamount to war crimes against humanity.

The experts said that trout of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan are largely dependent on the glacier-fed systems from the Himalayas that sustain millions of people, and any disruption in water flow could push entire communities toward a reign of starvation.

APP/fam/