With the completion of the Shahpur Kandi Barrage, situated on the border of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir, the flow of water from the Ravi River to Pakistan has been completely halted. The foundation stone of the Barrage was laid by Former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao in 1995. However, the project was suspended for four and a half years following the disputes between the governments of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir. The Indus Water Treaty of 1960 signed between Pakistan and India gave India the right to control waters of Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas River.
This serves as a boost for the Jammu and Kashmir region which will benefit from the 1150 cusecs of water that was previously allocated to Pakistan. The water from the river will now be used for irrigating 32,000 hectares of land in the Kathua and Samba districts.