Bihar seeks resolution as India’s Ganga water sharing treaty with Bangladesh expires this year

What happened: The Ganga water-sharing treaty between India and Bangladesh, signed in December 1996, expires this year, and Bihar is seeking to resolve its long-standing demands before the treaty is renewed. Key numbers: Treaty signed December 1996. Lean period January to June. If flow at Farakka barrage is below 70,000 cusecs, each country gets half. Why it matters: Bihar's political leaders have argued for decades that the treaty does not adequately account for the state's water needs, and the renewal is the point at which those demands would be addressed.

The Ganga water-sharing treaty between India and Bangladesh, signed in December 1996, expires this year, and Bihar is seeking to resolve its long-standing demands before the treaty is renewed.

Bihar's political leaders have argued for decades that the treaty does not adequately account for the state's water needs, and the renewal is the point at which those demands would be addressed.