“In terms of pledges, Bangladesh has delivered more than India,” Professor Baladas Ghoshal, currently Secretary General and Director (Academic) of the Society for Indian Ocean Studies, told a seminar titled ‘Bangladesh-India-Nepal-Bhutan Regional Cooperation; Potentials and Reality’ organized by the Bangladesh Study Trust (BST) at the National Press Club on Tuesday. Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen, also the chair of BST, attended the program as chief guest. Teesta agreement was supposed to be inked in September 2011 in Dhaka during the visit of the then Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh, but did not happen due to last minute objections by the West Bengal chief minister. “We want to play a role in materializing the visions through collaboration with international partners and the BBIN initiative will get prominence,” he said. Describing Dhaka’s relations with New Delhi as very warm, he said that India has agreed to be associated with the BBIN initiative as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had requested Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Source: Dhaka Tribune January 22, 2019 17:08 UTC