Recently India-Bangladesh has organized the seventh round of Joint Consultative Commission (JCC) meeting.
- Both the countries agreed to expand the strategic partnership to explore cooperation in the areas of artificial intelligence, cyber security, start-ups and fin-tech.
- In addition, the two countries will take forward ties in the railway sector as well as in cross-border river management and conservation.
- India shares 54 trans-border rivers with Bangladesh. Of these, there are disputes over the Teesta and Ganga rivers and the power project on the Barak.
Importance of India-Bangladesh relations
- Security and connectivity of the Northeast: Bangladesh as a friendly country can ensure that its land is not used for anti-India activities. In addition, the states of Northeast India are landlocked and the sea access through Bangladesh is short.
- Bridge to Southeast Asia: Bangladesh is a natural pillar of India’s ‘Act East’ policy. At the same time, it is also an important component of BIMSTEC and Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and India (BBIN) initiative.
- Trade Relations: Bangladesh is India’s largest trading partner in South Asia.
- Balancing China: Neutral Bangladesh will ensure to keep aggressive China under control in the region.
Recently, Bangladesh has denied China’s claims of its Padma Bridge being part of the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’. Padma Bridge is the biggest infrastructure project in Bangladesh.
Source – The Hindu
