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Bangladesh’s Sheikh Hasina to visit India during Sept 5-8, focus on deepening ties
India and Bangladesh are expected to sign an interim agreement on the sharing of waters of Kushiyara river during PM Sheikh Hasina’s Sept 5-8 visit to India. She will also travel to Rajasthan
NEW DELHI: India and Bangladesh are expected to focus on new ways to enhance cooperation in crucial areas such as connectivity, trade, and sharing of river waters during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to the country during September 5-8.
Hasina will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Droupadi Murmu, and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on the second day of her state visit. External affairs minister S Jaishankar will also call on her. Besides her engagements in New Delhi, Hasina will travel to Rajasthan to visit the famous shrine of Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti and fly out from Rajasthan on September 8.
“In the recent years, both sides have sustained high level of engagement, including at the highest level,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi told a weekly news briefing while announcing the visit.
“The forthcoming visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will further strengthen the multifaceted relationship between the two countries based on strong historical and cultural ties and mutual trust and understanding,” he said.
The two countries are expected to sign an interim agreement on the sharing of waters of Kushiyara river during the visit, people familiar with the matter said.
The two sides finalised the text of the agreement at the ministerial-level meeting of the India-Bangladesh Joint Rivers Commission held in New Delhi on August 25.
India and Bangladesh share 54 rivers, of which seven have been identified for developing a framework of water-sharing agreements. The Joint Rivers Commission was constituted in 1972 as a mechanism for addressing issues of mutual interest related to cross-border rivers.
Hasina last visited India in October 2019, and this was followed by Modi’s visit to Dhaka in March last year to participate in Bangladesh’s independence day celebrations. Ties between the two sides have witnessed considerable progress in recent years, especially in the field of connectivity, trade and energy, and leaders from both countries have said the current phase as a “shonali odhyay” (golden chapter).
India has hosted a series of events to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1971 war that led to the creation of Bangladesh from the erstwhile East Pakistan.
