In a move to build a new and forward-looking relationship between India and Bangladesh, the Prime Ministers of both the nations are set to meet at New Delhi today. Today's meeting may prove to be a path breaking as a wide range of topics from security, infiltration, power, trade, cultural, and social are scheduled to be discussed here.
To strengthening and nurturing the bilateral relationship between the two countries, the Bangladesh Prime Minister Beghum Sheikh Hasina Wazed arrived India on January 10, 2010 with a team of high-level delegates. It is her maiden visit after winning the parliamentary election held on December 2008.
India is citing her visit as a 'historical opportunity' and hoping to be addressed three crucial counter-terror pacts, one power sharing trade and issues of sharing of rivers' waters.
Dhaka is looking for reforming the relationship between the two 'old friends' which was suffered during the regime of previous Prime Minister Khalida Zia on a set of issues including the alleged sheltering of insurgent leaders by Dhaka, and getting other sorts of benefits economical and cultural benefits.
In the Monday meet, according to sources, India and Bangladesh can ink on five crucial agreements – mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, mutual transfer of convicted prisoners, a pact of countering international terrorism, organised crimes and illegal drug trafficking, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on expanding power cooperation covering inter-grid connectivity, resolving the maritime border dispute, and promoting the bilateral trade and connectivity.
Some other important issues are also likely to be addressed including sharing of rivers' waters, and some of direct interest to Bangladesh like India's permission to facilitate a rail transit link from Bangladesh to Nepal, maritime border dispute solution, a credit of USD 500-million to promote the infrastructure development in Bangladesh, human resource development, cultural development, investment and trade, sources added.
India will also confer Hasina a prestigious Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development Tuesday and Indian Prime Manmohan Singh will host a banquet dinner in her honour.
A tour to holy shrine of Khawaza Moinuddin Chishti at Ajmer is also included in the list of her three days visit, sources said.
Earlier, Indian Minister of State for External Affairs Praneet Kaur and Foreign Secretary of India Nirupama Rao warmly hosted the arrival of Hasina at Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi on Sunday.
|
|
Comments:
