Recently, India and Bangladesh agreed to enhance cooperation in new areas and signed multiple agreements. This includes strengthening ties in maritime affairs and the blue economy.

• The pacts were finalised during talks between the Indian Prime Minister and his visiting Bangladeshi counterpart. 

Bangladesh Prime Minister Hasina arrives on two-day State visit to India

• Recently, the Bangladesh Prime Minister was on a two-day visit to India. 
• It is the first incoming bilateral state visit by a foreign leader after the formation of the new government in India following the Lok Sabha elections.
• The Bangladesh Prime Minister was among the seven top leaders from India’s neighbourhood and the Indian Ocean Region who attended the swearing-in ceremony of the Indian Prime Minister and the Union Council of Ministers.

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Crucial Insights on the Recently Signed Pact between India and Bangladesh

India and Bangladesh have embarked on a new chapter of bilateral relations by focusing on following key areas:

• Initiating Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) Talks: 
  • This agreement aims to enhance economic interactions, streamline trade processes, and promote investment between the two countries. 
  • CEPA is expected to bring substantial economic benefits, fostering closer economic integration and cooperation.
• Maritime Cooperation and the Blue Economy: 
  • This pact aims to sustainably harness marine resources, improve maritime connectivity, and promote economic growth through the blue economy initiatives. 
  • This collaboration is crucial for the sustainable development of both nations, leveraging their maritime capabilities.
• Enhancing Defense and Security Collaboration:
  • Both nations agreed to enhance defense collaboration, focusing on defense production and the modernization of their armed forces. 
  • India welcomed Bangladesh’s decision to join the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative, which aligns with India’s strategic vision for regional security and stability.
    • Indo-Pacific Oceans’ Initiative (IPOI) seeks to ensure security and stability of the regional maritime domain.
• Advancing Digital and Green Partnerships:
  • Enhanced cooperation in digital infrastructure and technology is set to bolster the tech ecosystems of both countries, while the green partnership agreement aims to promote sustainable development practices, focusing on renewable energy and environmental conservation. 
• Improving Railway Connectivity:
  • Agreements signed to improve cross-border railway links. 
  • These enhancements are expected to facilitate smoother transit of goods and passengers, stimulating economic activities in the region. 
    • The recent operationalization of the sixth rail link between Jakhoda and Agartala serves as a testament to this progress.
• Healthcare Initiatives and E-Medical Visas:
  • India announced the launch of an e-medical visa facility for Bangladeshi nationals seeking medical treatment in India. 
  • Also, India plans to open a new consulate in Rangpur, Bangladesh, to provide enhanced consular services and strengthen people-to-people ties.
• Hydrological Cooperation on Shared Rivers:
  • Both countries agreed to commence technical-level discussions for the renewal of the Ganga River treaty. 
  • A technical team will visit Bangladesh to review the protection and management of the Teesta River. 
  • This cooperation reflects the commitment to managing shared water resources effectively and addressing common hydrological challenges.

About India-Bangladesh Relations

India and Bangladesh share deep-rooted bonds of history, language, culture, and multitude of other commonalities. The outstanding nature of bilateral ties is reflected in an all-encompassing partnership based on sovereignty, equality, trust, and understanding. 

• Historical Ties: The foundation of India-Bangladesh Relations was laid in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. India provided critical military and material support to assist Bangladesh in its fight for independence from Pakistan. 
  • • This became a primary factor in shaping the newly independent nation’s policy, as acknowledged by ‘Bangabandhu’ Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: “Friendship with India is a cornerstone of the foreign policy of Bangladesh.”
  • In the mid-1970s, there was a rise in anti-India sentiment over issues ranging from boundary disputes and insurgency to the sharing of water.
  • Bilateral relations have evolved positively under Sheikh Hasina’s leadership since 1996 and scripted a new chapter in bilateral ties with a treaty on the sharing of Ganga Waters.
    • Since then, India and Bangladesh have built cooperation in Trade, Energy, Infrastructure, Connectivity and Defence.
• Economic and Commercial Ties: Bangladesh is India’s biggest trade partner in South Asia and India is the second biggest trade partner of Bangladesh in Asia. 
  • In FY 2023-24, the total bilateral trade has been reported as USD 14.01 billion. 
  • New areas of commercial cooperation such as cooperation in the Startup Sector have emerged over the years. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the India-Bangladesh Startup Bridge in March 2021. 
    • The first Start Up delegation from Bangladesh visited India in May 2023 which was followed by a reciprocal visit from India to Bangladesh in July 2023 to the first Bangladesh Startup Summit, 2023.
  • In 2022, both nations concluded a joint feasibility study on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). 
    • The CEPA aims to enhance economic interactions, streamline trade processes, and promote investment between the two countries. CEPA is expected to bring substantial economic benefits, fostering closer economic integration and cooperation.
• Development Partnership: Bangladesh is the largest development partner of India today. India has extended 3 Lines of Credit (LOC) to Bangladesh in the last 8 years amounting to around US$ 8 billion for development of infrastructure in various sectors including roads, railways, shipping and ports. 
  • Also, India has been providing grant assistance to Bangladesh for various infrastructure projects including, construction of Akhaura-Agartala rail link, dredging of inland waterways in Bangladesh and construction of India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline.
  • High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDPs) constitute an active pillar of India’s development assistance. 
  • India has been providing training to Bangladesh Civil Service officials, police officials, judicial officials and judges, professionals, among others, at various premier training institutes in India. 
• Connectivity: 
  • Railway Connectivity: Efforts for greater connectivity to forge enduring people-centric partnership have resulted in rehabilitation of 6 pre-1965 rail links. 
    • Operational Rail Links between India and Bangladesh:
      • Agartala (India)- Akhaura (Bangladesh)
      • Haldibari (India)-Chilahati (Bangladesh)
      • Petrapole (India)-Benapole (Bangladesh)
      • Gede (India)–Darshana (Bangladesh)
      • Singhabad (India)-Rohanpur (Bangladesh)
      • Radhikapur (India)–Birol (Bangladesh)
    • Operating Railway Trains:
      • Maitri Express (since 2008, connecting Kolkata and Dhaka)
      • Bandhan Express (since 2017, connecting Kolkata and Khulna)
      • Mitali Express (since June 2022, between New Jalpaiguri and Dhaka)
  • Road and Inland Water Connectivity: Currently, five bus services routes are operational between India and Bangladesh. 
    • India and Bangladesh have a Protocol on Inland Waterways Trade and Transit (PIWTT) that has been operational since 1972, for facilitating trade and transit. 
    • PIWTT permits movement of goods for inter-country trade as well as transit over barges/vessels through the river systems of India and Bangladesh. Cruise services between both countries through usage of PIWTT routes have also been operational.
  • Port Connectivity: Both countries have operationalized the Agreement for the usage of Chittagong and Mongla Ports in 2023. 
    • This will allow India to avail the services of these ports in Bangladesh for transit cargo between Northeast and mainland India. 
    • This will significantly reduce the cost and time of transportation. 
• Power and Energy: Cooperation in the power and energy sector has become one of the crucial pillars of India- Bangladesh relations. Bangladesh is currently importing 1160 MW of power from India. 
  • The Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant has been made operational in supplying electricity to the Bangladesh grid.
  • The Joint Working Group (JWG)/Joint Steering Committee (JSC) on Power provides an institutional framework to promote bilateral cooperation. 
  • India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline between both countries for carriage of High Speed Diesel from India into Bangladesh was inaugurated in March 2023. 
  • Further, ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL), in a consortium with Oil India Limited, is present in off-shore oil exploration. IOCL has also been registered as a G2G supplier in 2023. 
  • In 2018, Russia, Bangladesh and India signed a memorandum of cooperation in the implementation of the Rooppur Nuclear power plant project, Bangladesh’s first nuclear power reactor.
• Cultural Cooperation: The Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre and the Indian Cultural Centre in Dhaka both play an important role in celebration of common cultural links between the two countries. 
  • Its training programs including Yoga, Kathak, Manipuri dance, Hindi language, Hindustani classical music and the cultural programs of renowned artists of India and Bangladesh contribute in promotion of people-to-people contacts.
  • India launched a revamped version of the Bangladesh Youth Delegation 2022 campaign to attract the best of Bangladeshi talent in June 2022 as an important youth connect initiative. 
  • A 100-member delegation visited India in February 2024, wherein they toured prominent sites of academic/cultural interest in New Delhi and other Indian cities.
• Defence Cooperation: In the defence sector, significant bilateral exchanges took place in 2023-2024 with incoming and outgoing visits of the Chiefs of the Indian and Bangladesh Armed Forces. 
  • The 5th Annual Defence Dialogue and 4th Tri-Services Talks were held in August 2023 in Dhaka to comprehensively review ongoing defence cooperation. 
  • Joint military exercises between India and Bangladesh are Exercise Sampriti (Army), Exercise Bongo Sagar(Navy).
• Security and Border Management: There is active cooperation between various agencies of both countries working together to cooperate on police matters, anti-corruption activities and combat the issues of illicit drug trafficking, fake currency, human trafficking, among others. 
  • Peaceful and cooperative management mechanisms for the security of the 4,096 kms long international border areactively focused on border fencing, joint inspection of boundary pillars, joint boundary demarcation, including riverine boundaries, among others. 
  • Other bilateral mechanisms such as the DG Level talks between Border Guarding Forces, DG Level talks between nodal Drugs Control Agencies, among other tracks are held regularly to discuss, exchange information and engage in better coordination.
• Multilateral Cooperation: Both engage in various multilateral fora such as SAARC, BIMSTEC, and  Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA).
  • Also, as per India Tourism Statistics Report 2022, Bangladesh has been the second-largest tourist-generating market for India in the year 2021.

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Challenges in India-Bangladesh Relations

Despite sharing relations on multiple fronts, India-Bangladesh are facing following challenges that need to be resolved as soon as possible.

• China Factor: Bangladesh aligns strategically with China with its investments in BRI-financed infrastructure projects having surpassed $10 billion. China has invested over $25 billion in various projects in Bangladesh, the second-highest in a South Asian country after Pakistan. 
  • It has played a significant role in building bridges, roads, railway tracks, airports, and power plants in Bangladesh. Importantly, a broad array of products from Bangladesh enjoys zero tariffs in China.
  • In addition, China has emerged as an important military ally of Bangladesh. China-Bangladesh first-ever joint military exercises, ‘China-Bangladesh Golden Friendship 2024′, takes the UN peacekeeping force counter-terrorism operations.
• Sanction by US: The United States has openly expressed its dissatisfaction with the ‘undemocratic’ procedures adopted by the Awami League in the lead-up to the election. The US sanctions on Bangladesh may force increased dependence of Bangladesh on China.
• Concerns of  Minorities: The Hindu minorities in Bangladesh have faced atrocities by the majority population. Hindus comprise a meagre 8% of the country’s population.
• Concerns of Influx of illegal Bangladeshi Immigrants from Bangladesh: The influx of illegal migrants from Bangladesh into West Bengal and Assam has created demographic challenges as well as posed a burden on resources meant for Indian citizens.
  • The National Register of Citizens (NRC), aimed at curbing such migration, has raised concerns in Bangladesh.
• Illegal Migration and Human Trafficking: The rackets involved in illegal infiltration and human trafficking are active along both sides. 
  • The Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the BSF recently rescued two Bangladeshi and one Indian woman from the clutches of human traffickers.
  • According to the South Bengal Frontier of the Border Security Force (BSF), 2,345 persons were apprehended for illegally crossing the border between January to November 2023.
• Smuggling of Goods and Cattles:  A range of commodities are traded illicitly across the entire stretch of the border. According to an estimate in 2014, illegal exports from India to Bangladesh were about $4 billion, which is almost the same as the volume of formal trade.  
  • There is rampant smuggling of gold and Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) along the border.
  • In the year 2022, the South Bengal Frontier seized about 114 kilogram of gold and the FICN seized along the frontier had increased from fake currency valuing 3.33 lakh in 2022 to fake currency valuing ₹15.86 lakh till November 2023.
  • Every year, more than 2 million Indian cattle are smuggled to Bangladesh due to the porous India-Bangladesh border. 
• Drug Trafficking: Bangladesh is increasingly being used as a  transit point by drug dealers and the drug mafia,  which  dispatches  heroin  and  opium  from  Burma,  and  other  countries  of  the  golden  triangle,  to  different destinations.
• Water Sharing Issues: The Teesta River, originating in the Himalayas and flowing through Sikkim and West Bengal before merging with the Brahmaputra in Assam (Jamuna in Bangladesh), is a major point of contention between India and Bangladesh, both friendly neighbors.
  • Unresolved treaties for major rivers like Teesta and Feni despite sharing 54 rivers, impacting bilateral relations.
  • India and Bangladesh share 54 common rivers, but only two treaties have been signed so far of Ganga Waters Treaty and The Kushiyara River Treaty.

Way Forward

The recently approved pacts are important and must be prioritsed, along with addressing the following issues: 

• Addressing the Issue of Illegal Migration: Measures should be taken to resolve the issue of illegal migration and ensure that illegal migrants do not acquire voting rights and Indian nationality.
• Security Cooperation: There is a need for institutionalizing the security cooperation so that it does not remain restricted to the tenure of a particular government in either country. 
• Resolve Water Sharing Issue: A beginning could be made by signing the bilateral extradition treaty Agreement on water sharing. Early resolution of the Teesta issue is necessary. 
• People-to-people Connect: Growth in people-to-people contact needs to be encouraged. Hence liberal visa system should be put in place.
  • Pursuant to the policy of Government of India to further liberalise the Indian visa application process and strengthen people-to-people ties between India and Bangladesh, services across the 16 IVAC centres nationwide have been augmented to cater to the rising demand for Indian visa.
• Cultural and Sports Diplomacy: Recently, India extended best wishes to both the Indian and Bangladeshi cricket teams ahead of their T20 World Cup match. Such gestures underscore the cultural affinities and shared enthusiasm for sports between the two nations that needs to be followed in future too.

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