India Fast-Tracks Chenab Hydropower, Tightening Grip on Water; Pakistan's Options Dwindle

• India is accelerating four key hydropower projects on the Chenab river system in Jammu and Kashmir, leveraging its upper riparian position.
• Projects like Pakal Dul, Kiru, Kwar, and Ratle are being fast-tracked with strict deadlines, some for commissioning by 2026 and 2028.
• This strategic move impacts Pakistan's water-dependent economy and agriculture, as its survival relies heavily on western Indus basin rivers.
• Pakal Dul, India's largest Chenab hydropower project, is a storage dam allowing regulation of seasonal flows into Pakistan, a long-standing red line for Islamabad.
• India is dismissing Pakistan's objections, signaling a shift in posture and effectively freezing the Indus Waters Treaty's constraints.

Why It Matters: India is strategically using fast-tracked hydropower projects on Chenab to gain control over water resources, limiting Pakistan's options.