As a disclaimer, this is all wild speculation.
India would be pushed to choose sides if a larger conflict emerged. I don't see the larger conflict starting over the Himalayan border. Rather the larger conflict could cause this long running dispute to erupt.
Water rights are just one part of the issue. I expect that a larger conflict would emerge if the CCP became more active with Russia militarily. Also expecting the Taiwan issue to flare up first. Perhaps this might be buoyed by domestic issues in China, where the party seeks to boost nationalist sentiment by focusing on external enemies.
Global trade and currency wars are a more pressing issue. An Iranian conflict might be one answer to the Saudis accommodating the CCP. Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the straits of Hormuz. This in turn would cause the Iranian/Saudi rivalry to further erupt. Provoking a conflict there would fit the pattern of creating an contiguous block of anti-western powers.
With a clear set of enemies defined, the military industrialists and banking cartels have their work cut out for them. Treasuries owned by the CCP can be reneged upon. Unlimited spending is once again rationalized. The victors would be able to impose their currency system upon the world. Unsustainable debt would be reorganized.
>“When goods don’t cross borders, soldiers will”
https://fee.org/resources/if-goods-dont-cross-borders/
