Sharing flood data with Pakistan on humanitarian ground, says India

India on Friday said it has been sharing flood data with Pakistan through diplomatic channels on humanitarian ground even as the Indus Water Treaty remains suspended.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India has been sharing the flood data with that country through the Indian high commission in Islamabad.

"We have been sharing high flood data with Pakistan through our diplomatic channels as and when it is required. This sharing of data is happening through our high commission in Islamabad," he said.

"You've seen the kind of rainfall that is happening in that part of India and that part of the world. And this is being done based on humanitarian considerations," Jaiswal said at his weekly media briefing.

A day after the April 22 Pahalgam attack, India announced a series of punitive measures against Pakistan, including the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty with New Delhi asserting that "blood and water" cannot flow together.

India has been maintaining that the Indus Waters Treaty will remain in "abeyance" until Islamabad "credibly and irrevocably" abjures support to cross-border terrorism.

In response to the Pahalgam terror attack, India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terrorist infrastructure in territories controlled by Pakistan.

The strikes triggered four days of intense clashes that ended with an understanding on stopping the military actions on May 10.

To a question on expansion of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), Jaiswal said it is an ongoing process.

"This year, both Armenia and Azerbaijan submitted applications for membership. Due to time constraints, a decision on the issue could not be taken by member states in Tianjin," he said.

"The matter continues to be under consideration by the group," he said.

This year's annual SCO summit took place in the Chinese city of Tianjin on August 31 and September 1.