Transboundary rivers
Also called: Shared rivers · Topic: India and her Neighbours · NCERT: Class 7, Ch 2 "India and Her Neighbours"; Class 8, Ch 1 "Natural Resources and Their Use"
Meaning
Transboundary rivers are rivers that flow across the borders of two or more countries. The country upstream can change how much water reaches the country downstream. This means such rivers can bring countries together, but they can also cause conflict, so countries sign treaties to share them. India and Bangladesh alone share 54 rivers, which their Joint Rivers Commission (1972) handles. The Indus, Satluj and Brahmaputra all rise in Tibet, which makes China upstream of India on all three.
Example
Two treaties show how such rivers are shared:
- Indus Waters Treaty (1960): India got the eastern rivers (Ravi, Beas and Satluj). Pakistan got most use of the western rivers (Indus, Jhelum and Chenab). India put this treaty "in abeyance" in April 2025.
- Ganga Waters Treaty (1996): it shares the water at Farakka barrage with Bangladesh, where the Ganga is called the Padma. This treaty expires in 2026.
Don't confuse with
- Interstate rivers: these cross state borders within India, such as the Cauvery between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. They do not cross national borders.