World Bank Group President Ajay Banga met Prime Minister Narendra Modi today, just days after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack. This meeting took place against the backdrop of India’s airstrikes on terror hubs in Pakistan and PoK, and Pakistan’s failed drone-missile retaliation targeting Indian military sites across 15 cities.
Significance of Indus Treaty suspension
The timing of Banga’s visit is crucial as India recently halted the Indus Waters Treaty—signed in 1960 between then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistan’s President Mohammad Ayub Khan. The World Bank had played a mediatory role in the nine-year negotiations that led to the agreement and is also a signatory to the pact.
Following the suspension, India stopped water flow from the Baglihar dam on the Chenab River, located in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ramban district. The 900 MW hydroelectric project, developed under the treaty’s provisions, can only store water up to a designated limit, after which it must be released. Blocking this flow served as a strategic message to Pakistan amid heightened tensions.
Banga’s upcoming itinerary in India
Ajay Banga is also scheduled to visit Uttar Pradesh tomorrow for a series of meetings and engagements. A statement from the Uttar Pradesh government highlighted, “His visit reflects the increasing global interest in Uttar Pradesh’s rapid development under the leadership of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, as the state moves steadily toward its ambitious goal of becoming a USD 1 trillion economy.”
The World Bank President’s visit underlines India’s geopolitical and economic balancing amid regional challenges and international cooperation.
