During the early 60's, Indus Basin Treaty was brokered between Pakistan and India by IBRD, the World Bank and some major EU countries. By virtue of this, India took total control of the waters of three of our rivers. These rivers remain mostly dry in Pakistan through out the year. This monsoon season, though, India has released extra water in these rivers without giving us prior information. As a result, our villages mushroomed in the dried water courses of these rivers are inundated, crops destroyed, houses gutted and a lot of our animals and people killed. Looking into future, our government needs to build small multi-purpose dams on these rivers in the Pakistani Punjab area to store this sort of water flow whenever it is released by India in monsoons. These dams could be used throughout the year for cultivation, small-scale electricity generation, provision of natural habitat and sanctuary for migratory birds and fish production. They would also provide scenic spots for picnics for people residing in the adjacent cities. Above all, the people residing along these rivers would also be relieved of the fear of damage from the flashfloods. -SAJID M. ANSARI, via e-mail, August 21.