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<p>Water disputes in transboundary river basins are shaped by material, institutional, and ideological power. This study examines the Indus River basin, shared by India and Pakistan and governed by the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, often hailed as a model for water diplomacy. Despite its stability, the treaty has facilitated India’s water governance dominance through the nation’s commandeering of infrastructure, use of legal ambiguities, and selective framing of political discourse. This research analyzes Indian media narratives through the <i>Times of India and The Hindu</i>, from 2023–2024, applying Zeitoun and Warner’s (2006) framework of hydrological hegemony and discourse analysis to media constructions of India’s dominance.</p><p>Through discursive analysis, this study identifies two key “empty” signifiers: <i>techno-rationality and securitized dualism</i>. By analyzing these signifiers and their role in establishing ideological hegemony, this study demonstrates how Indian media emphasize climate adaptation, procedural compliance, and national resilience to legitimize infrastructural projects, while marginalizing Pakistani objections, thereby seamlessly integrating hydrological hegemony in rhetorical and material practices. This research challenges the portrayal of the treaty as mostly cooperative and underscores the need for wholly inclusive governance to address structural inequities and climate challenges in transboundary water disputes.</p>

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Hydrological-hegemony and media narratives: India’s transboundary governance over the Indus basin

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

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  • 发表日期：

    2026年7月9日

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  • Zhou Li,
  • Shanling Dong

摘要

Water disputes in transboundary river basins are shaped by material, institutional, and ideological power. This study examines the Indus River basin, shared by India and Pakistan and governed by the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, often hailed as a model for water diplomacy. Despite its stability, the treaty has facilitated India’s water governance dominance through the nation’s commandeering of infrastructure, use of legal ambiguities, and selective framing of political discourse. This research analyzes Indian media narratives through the Times of India and The Hindu, from 2023–2024, applying Zeitoun and Warner’s (2006) framework of hydrological hegemony and discourse analysis to media constructions of India’s dominance.

Through discursive analysis, this study identifies two key “empty” signifiers: techno-rationality and securitized dualism. By analyzing these signifiers and their role in establishing ideological hegemony, this study demonstrates how Indian media emphasize climate adaptation, procedural compliance, and national resilience to legitimize infrastructural projects, while marginalizing Pakistani objections, thereby seamlessly integrating hydrological hegemony in rhetorical and material practices. This research challenges the portrayal of the treaty as mostly cooperative and underscores the need for wholly inclusive governance to address structural inequities and climate challenges in transboundary water disputes.