50 Years of India Bangladesh Relations

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India was one of the first countries to recognize Bangladesh and establish diplomatic relations immediately after its independence in December 1971. Hallmarks of India-Bangladesh Relations centre around Defence Cooperation, Cooperation over Rivers, Economic Relations, Cooperation in Connectivity,

Cooperation in Power Sector and hold Partnership on many Multilateral forum including at the UN

PM Modi’s visit to Bangladesh on 27 March 2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held his first oversees visit during the Corona pandemic to Bangladesh.PM Modi’s visit coincided with celebrations marking the birth centenary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and 50 years of Bangladesh’s liberation war. Mr Modi was the only foreign leader invited to attend celebrations marking the golden jubilee of Bangladesh’s independence, and he called for greater bilateral cooperation to confront shared challenges such as terrorism and to boost trade and connectivity.

He and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina on Saturday reviewed progress in development and connectivity initiatives even as the two countries signed five agreements in areas ranging from trade to disaster management. These agreements were:

  2. Establishment of a framework for cooperation in trade remedial measures.
  3. Establishment of sports facilities at Rajshahi College.
  4. Cooperation between Bangladesh National Cadet Corps and India’s National Cadet Corps.
  5. Supply of ICT equipment, reference books and training for the Bangladesh-Bharat Digital Service and Employment Training Centre.

On the second and final day of his visit Mr Modi held one-on-one talks with Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka. This was followed by delegation-level talks that lasted more than an hour. The two leaders discussed progress in areas such as trade, connectivity, health, energy and developmental cooperation. The new MoUs are aimed to add strength to the development partnership and benefit the people of the two sides.

PM Modi handed over a symbolic key to the Bangladesh counterpart for 109 ambulances gifted by India, and also donated 1.2 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines as a grant.

The two leaders virtually inaugurated several projects, including three border “haats” or markets and the extended development of Rabindra Bhawan at Shilaidaha Kuthibari, a country house in Kushtia where Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore spent a part of his life. They virtually laid the foundation stone for the development of infrastructure at the Rooppur nuclear power plant being jointly built by Russia and India.

PM Hasina presented gold and silver coins released to mark the birth centenary of her father, “Bongobandhu” Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, to Mr Modi. The two leaders released postage stamps marking 50 years of diplomatic relations.

Mr Modi began also visited the centuries-old Jeshoreshwari Kali Shaktipeeth in Satkhira, a temple dedicated to Goddess Kali and one of 51 shaktipeeths of the Puranic tradition.

He also announced a grant for building a community hall-cum-cyclone shelter at the temple complex. This structure will be used during the temple’s annual Kali puja and mela and also serve as a storm shelter and community facility. He also visited the, Modi sought blessings at the Hari Mandir at Orakandi and interacted with descendants of Harichand Thakur, a Hindu mystic and spiritual guru.

Mr Modi has described Bangladesh as a key pillar of India’s “Neighbourhood First” policy, while Hasina has referred to India as a “true friend” and said both sides can play a significant role in global and regional value chains by further integrating their economies and boosting connectivity.

Defence Cooperation

India has extended a $500 million line of credit to Bangladesh for defence imports from India, and has gifted 18 new 120mm mortars to the Bangladesh Army in December 2020 under army-to-army cooperation.

In January this year, a 122-member Bangladeshi tri-services contingent also participated in India’s Republic Day parade.

Two Indian naval ships — INS Kulish and INS Sumedha — visited Mongla Port of Bangladesh from 8-10 March, marking the first naval visit that India has undertaken for the first time in the last 50 years.

Bangladesh is a part of China’s Belt and Road initiative and Dhaka is also keen to be part of the Indo-Pacific strategic initiative.

Progress in talks on Teesta water sharing

India and Bangladesh have agreed to expand cooperation on issues relating to water resources during water resources secretary-level meeting between the two countries.

“There was extensive discussion on all the 56 rivers that flow between our countries. Of course, there are issues not just on water flows but use of water for drinking and irrigation purposes, in all areas India and Bangladesh are working.

During a trip to Dhaka earlier this month, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar had said India’s position on sharing Teesta river water “hasn’t changed”. The issue has, however, become contentious as water is a state subject and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has always opposed the move to share Teesta water with Dhaka.

The Teesta river flows through Sikkim and then enters West Bengal before finally merging with the Brahmaputra in Assam and the Jamuna in Bangladesh.

Emerging Issues requiring resolution

  1. There should be efforts to resolve pending issues concerning sharing of waters, resolving continental shelf issues in the Bay of Bengal, bringing down border incidents to zero, and managing the media.
  2. Bangladesh has already raised concerns over roll out of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, an exercise carried out to identify genuine Indian citizens living in Assam and weed out illegal Bangladeshis.
  3. Currently, Bangladesh is an active partner of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that Delhi has not signed up to.
  4. In the security sector, Bangladesh is also a major recipient of Chinese military inventory, including submarines.

Source : Mostly Internet 

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