How India Manages Its Transboundary Waters

This chapter broadly examines India's approach to transboundary water governance through the lens of ethical theoretical frameworks, including utilitarianism, deontology, Rawls’ justice, virtue ethics, and environmental ethics. It explores India's ethical foundation by evaluating its policy framework on five integrated ethical principles such as no significant harm, cooperation, human rights and dignity, environmental values, and accountability and transparency aligned with water ethics discourse and global policy framework, notably the UN Watercourse Convention (1997) and Helsinki Rules (1966). It analyses ethical considerations with both upstream and downstream states, mainly Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Nepal, and Pakistan. India faces a complex landscape of ethical transboundary water governance with its diverse river systems of the Brahmaputra, Ganges, Indus, Mahakali, and Teesta. India's National Water Policy (1987) updated in 2002 and 2012 and its operationalization through bilateral efforts such as the Indus Water Treaty (1960), Ganges Water Treaty (1996), and Mahakali Treaty (1996) reflect efforts to promote equitable water sharing, cooperation, and conflict resolution directly aligned with the principles of no significant harm and cooperation. However, challenges like geopolitical tensions, climate change, population growth, and technological limitations often lead to critical dilemmas and a hydro-hegemonic perception, particularly from downstream states like Bangladesh and Pakistan.