Trying to evolve 'political consensus' on Teesta: New Delhi tells Dhaka

New Delhi, May 7 (PTI) Internal consultations were on amongst stakeholders on India's sharing of Teesta river waters with Bangladesh and efforts are afoot to evolve a "political consensus" on the issue, India today told Bangladesh, which sought an early conclusion of the water pact at their first Joint Consultative Commission meeting. Extradition pact, connectivity, border management and trade were among other key bilateral issues that dominated the JCC meeting, which was co-chaired by India's External Affairs Minister S M Krishna and his Bangladeshi counterpart Dipu Moni here. "I have assured Dr Dipu Moni that India remains committed to an early solution on the issue of sharing Teesta waters. Since water is a sensitive issue, in accordance with the traditions of consensual decision-making in India's democratic polity, internal consultations are on amongst stakeholders," Krishna said at a joint press interaction. He said "we are trying to develop a political consensus in India. It is important that views of all those who are dependent on the water are taken into account and burden is shared equitably. Meanwhile, there is no change in ground situation, the waters are flowing...". Krishna's assurance came in response to Moni's remarks that she raised the "request about the early conclusion and the ratification of Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) and Teesta river treaty." The two sides also talked about concluding an extradition treaty, with the Bangladesh minister informing Krishna that a delegation will soon travel to India from Dhaka to further discuss the issue. Krishna said they reviewed the progress in bilateral cooperation in all areas, including trade, connectivity, power, water resources, security, border management, infrastructure, people to people contacts, culture, environment and education. The JCC was formed under the framework agreement on development and cooperation signed during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Dhaka in September last year. The Bangladesh minister said India has also given assurance that it will not take any unilateral decision on Himalayan rivers that flow from India to Bangladesh as part of the Indian river linking project. The meeting also reviewed progress made in implementation of the accords signed during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to New Delhi in 2010 and Singh's reciprocal visit to Bangladesh last September. "The meeting is reflective of the qualitative transformation that India-Bangladesh relations have witnessed in recent years. Our relations now encompass every possible area of cooperation," Krishna said. The mutual cooperation has resulted in commendable achievements in recent months which include 24-hour unfettered access to Bangladeshi nationals of its enclaves of Dahagram and Angarporta through the Tin Bigha Area of India and operationalisation of Coordinated Border Management Plan which will help to reduce incidents on the border, including illegal and criminal activities, he said. He also said the signing of the India-Bangladesh boundary strip maps by the plenipotentiaries of the two countries is almost complete, except for a few which are also likely to be completed very soon, apart from India's proposal to open new border haats (marts) along the International Border in the states of Tripura and Mizoram as well after the positive experience in Meghalaya. On the cooperation in the power sector, Krishna said the work on power inter-grid connectivity is progressing and hopefully 500 MW power would flow from India to Bangladesh during the summer of 2013. "We are also moving ahead with the setting up of a 1320 MW coal based joint venture power plant which is expected to be commissioned by 2016. We welcome the participation of Bangladesh in power projects in India, particularly in the North-Eastern states," he said. Krishna also noted a steady progress in utilisation of the USD one billion Line of Credit extended by India to Bangladesh and said just yesterday, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had announced in Dhaka that USD 200 million of the Line of Credit would be converted into grants-in-aid for projects of priority to Bangladesh. "Our focus now is to ensure timely delivery on the contracts .... So far, projects worth more than USD 810 million have been agreed upon and five contracts worth USD 83 million have been signed. The first consignment of buses has arrived in Dhaka and deliveries of railway rolling stock will start by the end of the year," he said. On the trade and investment front, Krishna said the decision by India in 2011 to grant zero duty access to all goods from Bangladesh has opened new opportunities for expansion of bilateral trade with a significant increase of textile exports from Bangladesh to India. On the Tipaimukh project, it has been agreed that a Sub-Group under the Joint Rivers Commission would be constituted to look into all aspects, including Prime Minister's proposal for joint participation in the project, the Minister said. Asserting that India attaches the highest importance to its relations with Bangladesh, the minister said there are few countries in the world whose destinies are as interlinked as theirs. "We share the longest land borders with each other. Many of us share the same religious beliefs, language, customs and aspirations. We deeply appreciate the initiative taken by the Government of Bangladesh to honour the people of India and the Indian armed forces for their contribution to the liberation of Bangladesh, a cause which is very close to our hearts," he added. PTI