The Bangladesh High Court on Thursday asked the government to explain in four weeks why it would not be directed to review the Ganges Water Sharing Treaty and take steps to ensure due share of waters. A NewAge Report.

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The bench of Justice Nazmun Ara Sultana and Justice M Rezaul Haque gave the ruling after hearing a public interest litigation writ petition filed by Supreme Court lawyers MK Muraduzzaman and Faruk Hossain on June 8.

Pleading for the petitioners, Tazul Islam argued that the treaty, singed with India on December 12, 1996, failed to protect the interest of Bangladesh and ensure proper and equitable share of the Ganges water.

'The respondents may be directed as to why the treaty on sharing of the Ganges water will not be reviewed according to the provision of the Berlin Rules on Water Resources 2004 and the provision of the UN Convention on the Law of Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses 1997, treating the Ganges as an international river,' said Tazul.

-- D(["mb","\u003cbr\u003e\n various channels in India in violation of the water sharing treaty, he added.\u003cbr\u003e Bangladesh was supposed to get 67,516 cusecs (cubic feet of water per second) during each specified \u0026#39;period\u0026#39;. The Bangladesh-India treaty divides each month into three periods. Bangladesh received only 55,556 cusecs in the first ten days of January, 2008, losing almost 12,000 cusecs during this period, the lawyer pointed out.\u003cbr\u003e\n Deputy attorney general Idris Khan opposed the petition, saying \u0026#39;The court has no jurisdiction to hear the matter as it is an international agreement.\u0026#39;\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e",1] ); D(["mb","\u003cspan class\u003dsg\u003e-- \u003cbr\u003ezakir kibria\u003cbr\u003eExecutive Director, BanglaPraxis\u003cbr\u003eand Co-ordinator, Solidarity Workshop\u003cbr\u003eWeb: \u003ca href\u003d\"http://banglapraxis.wordpress.com\" target\u003d\"_blank\" onclick\u003d\"return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)\"\u003ehttp://banglapraxis.wordpress\u003cWBR\u003e.com\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e",0] ); D(["ce"]); //-->Bangladesh was getting drier every year because of India's unilateral withdrawal of water from the common river Ganges. The quality of water down the Ganges point has critically declined because the Ganges water was diverted through various channels in India in violation of the water sharing treaty, he added.

Bangladesh was supposed to get 67,516 cusecs (cubic feet of water per second) during each specified 'period'. The Bangladesh-India treaty divides each month into three periods. Bangladesh received only 55,556 cusecs in the first ten days of January, 2008, losing almost 12,000 cusecs during this period, the lawyer pointed out.

Deputy attorney general Idris Khan opposed the petition, saying 'The court has no jurisdiction to hear the matter as it is an international agreement.'