"If they stop water, all of this will turn into the Thar desert, the whole country," one farmer said. "We'll die of hunger."

Following Tuesday's massacre of 26 mostly Indian tourists, hostilities have intensified between India and Pakistan over the hotly contested Kashmir region.

Anger in Indian-run Kashmir escalated on Monday over sweeping detentions in the hunt for the gunmen who carried out a deadly attack last week that New Delhi blames on arch-rival Pakistan.New Delhi has accused Pakistan of supporting "cross-border terrorism" after gunmen killed 26 people on April 22,