By IANS,
New Delhi: Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s top aide Mashiur Rahman Wednesday held wide-ranging talks with Indian officials that focused on implementing key decisions taken during her visit to India four months ago.
Sheikh Hasina’s Economic Affairs Adviser Mashiur Rahman, who arrived here Tuesday on a four-day visit, met senior Indian officials, including National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon, said a Bangladeshi official.
The two sides reviewed three key security and counter-terror pacts signed during Sheikh Hasina’s visit to India, the official added.
Rahman is expected to meet Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and Water Resources Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal Thursday, said the official. He is also likely to call on External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna.
The two sides are going to focus on an action plan to implement key commitments in the joint statement that included the export of 250 MW of electricity from India, operationalisation of the $1 billion credit line by India and an interim accord on sharing of Teesta waters.
They will discuss all the bottlenecks and chart the course of action, a Bangladeshi official said here.
Rahman’s visit follows talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sheikh Hasina April 29 on the sidelines of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit in Thimphu.
During his talks with Shinde, Rahman is set to discuss the modalities of power import from India.
The Bangladesh cabinet Monday had formed a high-powered committee to finalise an agreement to facilitate ratification of the power deal.
India’s Power Grid Corporation and Power Grid Company of Bangladesh are working to set up an inter-connector grid to transfer 250 MW of power from India to Bangladesh.
In addition to this, India’s NTPC and the Power Development Board of Bangladesh have also agreed to set up a 1,320 MW joint venture power plant at a cost of nearly $1.74 billion to meet the power requirements of Bangladesh.