Modi lauds Hasina's leadership: Bangladesh biggest development, trade partner of India

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Bangladesh has made remarkable progress under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and India will continue to walk step by step with Bangladesh in realising the vision of a stable, prosperous and progressive Bangladesh that Bangabandhu had seen.

Speaking at a joint press briefing following the bilateral meeting with her Bangladesh counterpart at Hyderabad House in New Delhi, Modi said the mutual cooperation between the two countries in the last few years has increased rapidly in every field and “today, Bangladesh is India's largest development partner and our largest trade partner in the region.”

With the expansion of connectivity between the two countries, and the development of trade infrastructure on the border, Modi said the two economies will be able to connect more with each other, support each other.

“Our bilateral trade is growing rapidly. Today, India is the largest market in Asia for Bangladesh's exports,” he said adding “To further accelerate this growth, we will soon start discussions on the Bilateral Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.”

“Trade between India-Bangladesh is increasing rapidly. We have also decided to extend cooperation in areas like IT, space and nuclear energy, which are of interest to our younger generations. We will also continue to cooperate on climate change and on preserving a common heritage like the Sundarbans,” Modi said.

In the presence of the two Prime Ministers, India and Bangladesh signed seven important Memorandums of Understanding on Tuesday.

Welcoming Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her delegation members, Narendra Modi said last year they celebrated together the fiftieth anniversary of Bangladesh's Independence, the golden jubilee of diplomatic relations, and the birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

On December 06 last year, he said the countries also celebrated the first 'Maitri Diwas' together all over the world.

“Today, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ji's visit is taking place during the Amrit Mahotsav of our independence. And I am confident that in the Amrit Kaal of the next 25 years, India-Bangladesh friendship will touch new heights,” Modi said.

The Indian Prime Minister in his speech also said India and Bangladesh should jointly face terrorist and radical forces that threaten to attack the friendship and trust between the two countries.

“Today, we also stressed on cooperation against terrorism and radicalism. To keep the spirit of 1971 alive, it is also very important that we fight together such forces, which want to attack our mutual trust.”

Terming the common rivers between India, Bangladesh, Modi said there are 54 rivers that pass through the Indo-Bangladesh border, and have been linked to the livelihood of the people of the two countries for centuries.

“These rivers, folk tales about them, folk songs, have also been witness to our shared cultural heritage. Today, we have signed an important agreement on sharing water of the Kushiyara river. This will benefit Southern Assam in India and Sylhet region in Bangladesh.”

The Indian Prime Minister said he had a fruitful conversation with Sheikh Hasina also on enhancing cooperation in relation to flood mitigation.

“India has been sharing flood-related data with Bangladesh on a real-time basis and we have also extended the period of data sharing,” he added.

Speaking about the rising energy prices, which are presently posing a challenge to all developing countries, Modi said the unveiling of the first unit of Maitree Thermal Power Plant will increase the availability of affordable electricity in Bangladesh.

The inauguration of the railway bridge over the Rupsha River is a remarkable step towards enhancing connectivity, Modi said adding that this bridge is an important part of the new railway line being built between Khulna and Mongla Port under India's Line of Credit.

“India will continue to extend all support for the development and expansion of Bangladesh's railway system.”