Golden Chapter In Indo-Bangladesh Relations: B’desh Foreign Minister

| Updated: 28 May, 2022 7:34 pm IST

External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar and Foreign Minister of Bangladesh Dr AK Abdul Momen

NEW DELHI: Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Saturday said that the ties between India and Bangladesh reached their golden chapter under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh.

Dr Momen’s comments came during his address at the third edition of Natural Allies in Development and Interdependence (NADI) in Guwahati, Assam.

Dr Momen is leading a parliamentary-level delegation to the riverine conference that is attended by representatives of 12 South and South-East Asian nations.

Speaking at the conference, Dr Momen said that the growth of Bangladesh will positively impact the region and underscored the interlinking of rivers.

“People of India and Bangladesh are dependent on rivers for sustaining life and livelihood. Throughout history, we have seen that civilizations flourished and perished with the flow of rivers,” Dr Momen said.

“Bangladesh is known as the land of rivers. There are 720 rivers including tributaries which have a total length of 24,1400 kilometres, which is one of the largest in the world. Rivers are the basic lifeline of Bangladesh. It made the remotest areas of the country accessible,” he said.

“Rivers have a huge impact on our tradition, music, lifetime and also influences politics,” Dr Momen said.

“Rivers don’t subscribe to either nation or nation-state. Rivers do not have nationality or religion. Rivers do not conform to pretty little which we use to divide ourselves,” Dr Momen pointed out, adding, “In both creation and destruction, rivers don’t discriminate according to beliefs, faiths, nationalities or even genders.”

Meanwhile, the meeting of the 7th Joint Consultation Commission between India and Bangladesh, which was scheduled for May 30 in New Delhi, has been postponed at a time when the two South Asian neighbours are contemplating signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement to scale up bilateral trade.

The JCC round, chaired by External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar and Foreign Minister of Bangladesh Dr AK Abdul Momen, takes stock of bilateral level ties between the two countries. The rescheduled date will be announced in the coming days.