DHAKA DISCOURSE

DHAKA DISCOURSE

Bangladesh: A New Thrust Towards East Asia

Delwar Hossain
Professor, Department of International Relations, Dhaka University

The Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina’s back-to-back visits to Japan and China provide a diplomatic bonanza to the government bedeviled by legitimacy crisis at home and abroad following the 5 January general elections this year. Hasina took the opportunity to silence her critics by making substantive gains in bilateral relations with the two East Asian countries. Japan is generally known as a committed development partner of South Asian countries – as reflected in volumes of official development assistance (ODA) pumped into the region every year. Japanese investment and bilateral trade volume between Tokyo and Dhaka have been seen a rise, especially over the past decade. Japan has remained the largest bilateral donor to Bangladesh for the past fifteen years. Both countries have developed a strong development partnership with growing activity by Japanese investors in Bangladesh.

The 21 point Japan-Bangladesh Comprehensive Partnership signed by the respective prime ministers during Hasina’s May 2014 visit is a demonstration of strong commitment to engage Japan more substantively in Bangladesh’s development process. In the past seven years, the number of Japanese companies operating in Bangladesh has nearly tripled – from 61 in 2007 to 176 in 2013; and the total grants and aid from Japan stood at $11 billion in 2013. Japan’s strategic intention was to combine two oceanic regions – the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean – for what the Japanese ambassador in Dhaka called a larger space for Japan’s economic activities.

He added that it looks like a “butterfly” in which Bangladesh and Myanmar occupies the “lynchpin position” to connect these oceanic regions. Apart from appreciating the strategic importance of Bangladesh, Tokyo would also be happy to receive Dhaka’s support in its bid for a permanent seat at the UNSC – and also to the issue of the abduction of Japanese nationals by North Korea. Recently, the Bangladeshi government recognised a number of foreign friends, including a few Japanese, for their contribution during the Bangldesh Liberation War.

As a result, the prime minister’s Japan visit has contributed to an agreement on a range of specific projects vis-à-vis, inter alia, the construction of Ganges Barrage, a multi-modal tunnel under Jamuna River, a dedicated Railway Bridge over Jamuna River, a multi-modal Dhaka Eastern Bypass, and the ecological restoration of four rivers around Dhaka. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Japan External Trade Organization and the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority that reserves important facilities in 5 EPZs in Bangladesh for Japanese investors. Japan has also committed its support for capacity building in nuclear safety and security. In an unprecedented gesture, Japan committed an ODA of $6 billion over the next five years that is crucial for infrastructure development in Bangladesh.

In a rare show of diplomatic moves, Hasina made a six-day official visit to China in early June with a 70-member business delegation immediately after she visited Japan. With these back to back visits, Hasina scored high points in diplomatic maneuvering both for her new government and the state. The much discussed China visit resulted in five deals, including Chinese assistance in the construction of a power plant in Patuakhali and building a multi-lane road tunnel under the Karnaphuli River. Chinese President Xi Jinping described Bangladesh as an important country along the maritime Silk Road project that he has been championing, and which envisages enhancing connectivities, building ports and free trade zones, and boosting trade with littoral countries in the Indian Ocean region and in Southeast Asia. China made it clear that it attaches great importance to the Beijing-Dhaka relationship and regards Bangladesh as an important development partner and cooperative partner in South Asia and the Indian Ocean region.

Bangladesh is an important country along the Maritime Silk Road for China, and Beijing welcomes Dhaka’s participation in the development of the cooperation initiatives of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. The issue of constructing the Bangladesh–China–India–Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor also garnered the interest of both leaders as part of efforts towards enhancing connectivity between China and eastern South Asia. However, the absence of any deal on construction of the Sonadia deep sea port was conspicuous. The diplomatic circles in both countries had widely expected a deal on this mega project. As revealed by Bangladesh’s State Minister of Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam, “Bangladesh has decided to take time to pick the best offer over the construction of a deep seaport at Sonadia in Cox’s Bazar as a number of countries have shown interest in the lucrative mega project.”

High level visits often turn out ceremonial and declaratory in substance. But these two visits of Bangladesh’s prime minister have been a diplomatic breakthrough for Dhaka in cementing its foreign policy thrust towards the east. The diplomatic overtures by Japan and China have emboldened the Hasina government in Bangladesh to strengthen her position domestically and internationally. Although Japan and China are traditional friends of Bangladesh, there has always been a gap in their economic engagement, particularly in the context of Bangladesh’s growing economic and social performance. The outcomes of the recent visits might lead to reduction in the gap, especially amid the new matrix of external roles in Dhaka’s domestic politics.

Bangladesh-Myanmar Border Skirmishes: Who, What and Why

Bangladesh-Myanmar Border Skirmishes: Who, What and Why

In the recently concluded Director General-level conference between Bangladesh and Myanmar in Naypyidaw, although both countries resolved to maintain peace and tranquility on the border – after exchanging gunfire along the border – many questions still remain to be addressed.

Why did these clashes begin, and what aggravated them further? Were they just isolated border tiffs or a calculated risk by Myanmar? What are the potential larger implications of the recent scuffle for the bilateral?

What prompted the border clash?
Both the governments have provided differing accounts of the reasons for the clashes. Dhaka claimed that the Myanmar Border Guard Police (BGP) killed one soldier of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in an ambush on 28 May. Dhaka also claims that later, the BGP once again began a ‘unprovoked attack’ when negotiations regarding returning of the body of the slain trooper was underway – triggering fresh gunfight along the border.

Conversely, Myanmar accused that clashes along the border were started by Bangladesh when armed members of the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO) – founded in 1980 for protecting the rights of the Rohingya people in Myanmar – allegedly operating from Bangladeshi territory, tried to enter Myanmar. Naypyidaw explained that the BGP fired on two men because they were wearing yellow camouflage unlike the Guards’ official uniform. These clashes occurred at a time when there already were tensions along the border following the May 17 incident where members of the BGP were allegedly attacked by members of the RSO. Myanmar stated that it would not tolerate any violation of its sovereignty and would make every attempt to prevent illegal border crossing from Bangladesh.

Recent violence on the border is indicative of growing lawlessness in the region. The Bangladesh-Myanmar border is known for criminal activities, including human trafficking, arms and drugs smuggling, and robbery. Additionally, the existence of improvised explosive devices in the border areas also created a trust deficit between the two neighbours. Border guards from both sides have been accused of being deeply entrenched in corrupt activities and exploitation of people living in the bordering areas, which frequently results in minor border tiffs; but sometimes taking form of a larger standoff.

Isolated Incident or a Calculated Risk?
The Bangladesh-Myanmar border has been volatile, porous and problematic since the British colonial era. Waves of ethnic violence two years ago in the Rakhine region have left this area segregated on religious lines which further aggravates the border tension. Myanmar created this border crisis with Bangladesh to gain leverage in the power struggle and divert international community’s attention from its domestic political developments.

It cannot be a sheer coincidence that the border crisis started the same day when the draft of four religious conversion bills were published in Myanmar’s newspapers – that require getting permission from local authorities before converting to other religions – and resumption of Myanmar’s parliamentary session. These proposed bills were severely criticised by civil society organisations as undemocratic and discriminatory. Hence, border skirmishes were an attempt by the Myanmar government to galvanise people’s support for the proposed legislation by dividing them on religious lines.

The border crisis was not a random incident. Prior to every election, tensions along the 270-kilometer border with Bangladesh have been escalated by the Myanmarese government. In 2009, a similar situation was created along the border by Myanmar via fencing and reinforcement of the border in the run up to the 2010 elections. Now, the border issue has come up again in the name of harbouring of the RSO by Bangladesh, for putting the BGP in a positive light to gain brownie points in the 2015 elections in Myanmar.

Moreover, after the latest census in Myanmar, where the Rohingya people were stripped off their identity and recognised as ’Bengalis’ illegally migrated from Bangladesh, the initiation of the border gunfight was another effort by Myanmar to negate its responsibility towards the Rohingyas and put the ball in Bangladesh’s court for finding a solution to illegal migration.

Larger Implications on the Bilateral
Dhaka and Naypyidaw asserted that the recent clashes are not indications of larger trends but are just isolated incidents due to misunderstandings on the border. Both countries officially stated that border incidents would not damage diplomatic relations. Myanmar has displayed a friendly gesture for improving ties with Bangladesh by returning 30 Bangladeshis arrested for illegally crossing the border.

Both sides agreed to set up a border liaison office for curbing cross-border crimes and to educate people residing in border areas about the demarcation. Both countries also declared that they will start a security dialogue to discuss and resolve the problems of the border areas. Thus, Dhaka and Naypyidaw governments are in no mood to further stretch the hostility on their shared frontier.

Besides, the neighbouring countries’ bone of contention is problem of insurgent groups such as the RSO that allegedly operate from border areas in Bangladesh. Though Dhaka bluntly rejected the existence of the RSO or any rebellious groups in Bangladesh, Myanmar’s question that if not the RSO then who is ambushing and attacking the BGP from BangladeshI territory? Hence, both countries have to engage in constructive dialogue for reaching a solution for this issue.

Islamic Fundamentalism in Bangladesh: Domestic and International Ramifications

Islamic Fundamentalism in Bangladesh: Domestic and International Ramifications

The Bangladeshi Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia, in her 10 April 2002 address to Parliament, has accused the opposition Awami League (AL) led by Sheikh Hasina of sponsoring the cover story in Far Eastern Economic Review highlighting the rising Islamic Fundamentalism in Bangladesh, as being largely responsible for tarnishing Bangladesh’s image as a moderate Muslim country. This has led to increased international attention and pressure by international donors. During their annual Paris meeting in March 2002, they attached conditionalities linking future development-aid to improvement in the law and order situation. This is a cause for concern, given Bangladesh ’s dependence on external aid.

 The international community had not paid much attention, often downplaying the threats in Bangladesh , due to the following reasons:

A neutral caretaker government was in power during the September 11 terrorist attacks;

 These attacks were condemned by both the major political parties, Bangladesh National Party (BNP) and the AL;

Bangladesh offered its airspace to US warplanes and promised its cooperation and support.

The growth of Islamic fundamentalism in Bangladesh has been insidious. Despite Mujib’s emphasis on the four cardinal principles of nationalism, socialism, secularism and democracy, religious politics had emerged during his tenure in office; this increased significantly during the Zia era and gained complete ascendancy after Ershad came to power.

By Proclamation Order No.1, the phrase “Bismillah-Ar-Rahiman-Ar-Rahim” (in the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful) was inserted in the preamble of the Constitution during the Zia regime in 1977. The second paragraph of the Preamble was rewritten, inserting the clause, “absolute trust in the Almighty Allah”. Clause 1 A was added to Article 8 in the chapter on ‘Fundamental principles of State policy,’ stating that “Absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah shall be the basis of all actions”. Article 12 of the 1972 constitution was deleted which protected secularism/freedom of religion and clause 2 was added to Article 25 declaring that, “the State shall endeavor to consolidate, preserve and strengthen fraternal relations among Muslim countries based on Islamic solidarity”.

The Proclamation Order was followed by lifting of the ban invoked by Mujib on five religious parties (Muslim League, Islamic Democratic League, Khilafat-e-Rabbani, Nizam-e-Islam and Jamaat-e-Islami). The Jamaat (the leading religious political party advocating Islamic ideals and Islamic way of life) reorganized itself under the aegis of Ghulam Azam. The BNP under Zia tried to retain a secular image whilst promoting Bangladeshi nationalism and accommodating pro-religious forces – self-contradictory goals.

The Ershad regime completed this Islamization process through the Eighth constitutional amendment in June 1988 declaring ‘Islam as the State religion’. State patronage to Islamic fundamentalism increased, evident from the proliferation of religious parties, further reorganization and strengthening of the Jamaat (whose main support base is students) and the emergence of a strong nexus between the armed forces and the religious groups/parties.

The fifth parliamentary elections in 1991 witnessed the victory of the BNP led alliance – this included the Jamaat, whose seats helped government formation. The election campaign and voting pattern in the eighth parliamentary elections held on 1 October 2001 reflected a massive communalization of Bangladesh politics in sharp contrast to the seventh parliamentary elections of June 1996. The BNP and its ally, Jamaat, were propounding the need for Islam and the Islamic way of life to be the state’s guiding principle, and promoting the ideals advocated by Osama bin Laden, as this would provide economic spin-offs.

The victory of the BNP-led four-party alliance (214 seats) with Jamaat (17 seats), resulted in the Jamaat securing the key portfolios of agriculture and social welfare, emphasizing its importance in a predominantly agricultural country. A major reason for the Jamaat’s victory was the sermons preached by imams in Bangladesh ’s mosques after September 11 eulogizing the role of Osama bin Laden, criticizing the ongoing crusade against Islam. In a quiet takeover, the majority of the mosques are with the Jamaat.

Whilst the Jamaat is cautiously moving towards the goal of an Islamic state, its inclusion within the government has encouraged the other more extreme fundamentalist groups like the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami. The linkages of the Harkat group with banned Islamic militant outfits like the Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Toiba, groups operating in the Middle-East, the Rohingyas, groups in Kashmir , in Chechnya , and Muslim radicals from Malaysia and Indonesia suggests that Bangladesh could become the breeding ground and safe haven for religious militants of all nations.

The emerging situation demands responsible behaviour and stringent action being taken by Bangladesh , but also collaborative efforts by the BNP, the AL as well as the Jamaat to refrain from engaging in destructive confrontational politics and agitational rhetoric.

The Problem of Poverty in Bangladesh

THE PROBLEM OF POVERTY IN BANGLADESH

By Professor Muhammad Yunus

Ever since its founding, Bangladesh has been known as one of the world's poorest countries. There has been an ongoing battle against challenging living conditions overcrowding, floods, deforestation, erosion, soil depletion and natural calamities. As Grameen Bank founder and Noble Prize winner Muhammad Yunus argues, solutions are available provided we are willing to entertain fresh thinking about poverty and its remedies.

I don't think we can blame fate, nature or God for our troubles. The real problem in Bangladesh is not the natural disasters. It is the widespread poverty, which is a man-made phenomenon.

Taking steps toward safety

Cyclones, floods and tidal surges occur in other countries. In most, they do not cause human misery of the magnitude we see in Bangladesh.

The reason is that, in these countries, the people are rich enough to build protective systems and strong embankments. Rivers in Canada, England and France have tidal surges similar to those in Bangladesh, but dredging and causeway construction have minimized their effects and the threat to human life.

Furthermore, poverty and over-crowding have pushed the countless poor in Bangladesh to seek their livelihoods in more and more unsafe areas of the country, though they lack the capacity to organize even minimal safety measures for themselves.

A threat to world peace

Thus, poverty doesn't only condemn humans to lives of difficulty and unhappiness­ it can expose them to life-threatening dangers. Because poverty denies people any semblance of control over their destiny, it is the ultimate denial of human rights. When freedom of speech or religion is violated in this country or that, global protests are often mobilized in response.

Yet when poverty violates the human rights of half the world's population, most of us turn our heads away and get on with our lives.

For the same reason, poverty is perhaps the most serious threat to world peace, even more dangerous than terrorism, religious fundamentalism, ethnic hatred, political rivalries or any of the other forces that are often cited as promoting violence and war.

Loss of hope

Poverty leads to hopelessness, which provokes people to desperate acts. Those with practically nothing have no good reason to refrain from violence, since even acts with only a small chance of improving their conditions seem better than doing nothing and accepting their fate with passivity.

Poverty also creates economic refugees, leading to clashes between populations. It leads to bitter conflicts between peoples, clans and nations over scarce resources water, arable land, energy supplies and any saleable commodity.

Prosperous nations that trade with one another and devote their energies to economic growth rarely go to war with one another ­ nations whose people are brutalized by poverty find it easy to resort to war.

By lifting people out of poverty, micro-credit is a long-term force for peace. And Bangladesh is a vivid example of what it can do.
Bangladesh today is a living laboratory­ one of the world's poorest countries that is gradually being transformed by innovative social and business thinking. Over the past two decades, conditions among the poor people of Bangladesh have steadily improved. Statistics tell part of the story.

Signs of improvement

The poverty rate (as measured by international aid organizations such as the World Bank) has fallen from an estimated 74% in 1973-74 to 57% in 1991-92, to 49% in 2000 and then to 40% in 2005.

Though still too high, it continues to fall by around 1% a year, with each percentage point representing a meaningful improvement in the lives of hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshis. The country is on track to achieve the Millennium Development Goal of reducing poverty by half by 2015.

Even more remarkably, Bangladesh's rapid economic growth has been accompanied by little increase in inequality. The commonly used Gini index of inequality has changed only from 0.30 in 1995 to 0.31 in 2005.

It's also noteworthy that, since 2000, the real per-capita income of the bottom 10% of the population has grown at the same annual rate as that of the top 10% (2.8%).

Tangible growth

The sharp drop in poverty is reflected in changes in economic growth, employment patterns and the structure of the economy. Growth of the Bangladeshi economy at $71 billion, the third largest in South Asia, after India and Pakistan­ has averaged 5.5% since 2000 and reached 6.7% in 2006, compared with just 4% in the 1980s. In addition, per-capita growth has increased from 1% in the 1980s to 3.5% currently.

Reliance on subsistence agriculture is gradually declining. In 2005, non-farm labor surpassed agriculture as the main source of income in rural areas, and fully 50% of the nation's GDP is now derived from the services sector.

Population growth a major problem in Bangladesh, one of the most densely populated countries on earth­ has fallen sharply, from an annual average of 3% in the 1970s to 1.5% in 2000. This is close to India's 1.4% but much lower than Pakistan's 2.5%.

Quality of life

This slowdown means that more families have the resources to care for their children and provide them with decent opportunities for education.

It also means the liberation of millions of women from an endless cycle of child-bearing and child rearing, giving them the chance to help their families improve their standard of living through productive work.

Controlling population

The decline in population growth has been driven, in large part, by improvements in health care. When more children survive, parents feel more confident about using birth control they no longer believe they need to bear five or six children in hopes of raising two. During the 1990s, the percentage of Bangladeshi mothers receiving prenatal health care doubled.

Partly as a result, infant mortality rates in Bangladesh fell by more than half (from 100 to 41 per 1,000 children) between 1990 and 2006. In addition, the mortality rate for children under five is 52 per 1,000 in Bangladesh compared with 87 in India and 98 in Pakistan.

Healthcare and life expectancy

In 2005, the percentage of one-year-old children among the poorest 20% of households who had been fully immunized stood at 50% in Bangladesh, compared with 21% in India and 23% in Pakistan.

Around 81% of children had been vaccinated against measles, compared with 58% in India. And while child malnutrition remains a serious problem, the percentage of children whose growth is stunted has declined from almost 70% in 1985-86 to 43% in 2004.

Statistics for life expectancy at birth, which were static at around 56 years through the early 1990s, have begun to climb. By 2006, life expectancy was estimated at 65 years, and the unusual situation in which women's life expectancy was lower than men's has finally been reversed, with women now at 65 years and men at 64 years.

Educational opportunities

Educational opportunities for children have also improved. The percentage of children completing the fifth grade has increased from 49% in 1990 to 74% in 2004. National literacy rates have increased from only 26% in 1981 to 34% in 1990 and 41% in 2002. The 1990s witnessed a tripling in the number of children attending secondary school.

More girls now attend secondary schools than boys, a feat unmatched in South Asia and a remarkable achievement given the fact that, in the Bangladesh of the early 1990s, there were three times as many boys as girls in secondary schools.

Health and sanitation

The quality of shelter and access to basic sanitation and telecommunication services have all improved significantly in recent years. In 2000, 18% of households lived under straw roofs. By 2005, the percentage had fallen to 7%.

A sanitation campaign has resulted in increased access to safe latrines from 54% in 2000 to 71% in 2005. The mobile-phone revolution has boosted the fraction of the population with access to telephone services from 2% in 2000 to 14% currently.

Guarding against disaster

Bangladesh's capacity to withstand natural disaster shocks has improved significantly. Following the massive floods of 1998, per-capita GDP fell sharply, but a flood of similar scale in 2004 had a negligible impact on growth.

This resilience is attributable to a more diversified economy and improved emergency response capabilities, including early warning systems and cyclone shelters, throughout the country.

Between 1980 and 2004, the Human Development Index (a widely used measurement of key standard-of-living indicators for developing nations) increased by 45% in Bangladesh compared to 39% in India and 16% in Sri Lanka. This is despite the fact that, as of 2004, per-capita GDP in India was 68% higher than in Bangladesh, and in Sri Lanka over 200% higher.

Global applications

As these numbers suggest, the problems of poverty in Bangladesh, though improved, are far from being solved. Bangladesh is still one of the poorest countries in the world, with tens of millions of people living at a level barely above subsistence. But the social and economic trends are moving in the right direction.

The challenges and opportunities facing Bangladesh illustrate some important themes that many of the world's developing countries share:

The need to think strategically about development, analyzing a country's potential role in its region and the world in search of opportunities for growth;
The need to get past myths, stereotypes, and assumptions about poor countries and their relations to their neighbors;
The need to find fresh, positive approaches to development that emphasize the potential strengths of a country and its people, not just their problems;
The need to think about how social business can address social and economic problems that are usually left to be resolved by governments.
These ideas offer hope for alleviating the worst effects of poverty both in Bangladesh and in many other poor countries around the world.

INDIA-BANGLADESH RELATIONS

INDIA-BANGLADESH RELATIONS
ISSUES, PROBLEMS AND RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

Bangladesh,  shares  4094  kilometers  of  land border with India on three sides, the
fourth  side  being  open  to  the  Bay  of  Bengal.   Various issues  need  to  be  resolved if  the
relationship  between  the  two  are  to  be  improved,  from  sharing  the  water  of  54 international rivers  that  flow  from  India  to  Bangladesh  to  controlling  terrorism  and promoting economic development.

I

TRADE 

The  trade  relationship  has  had  a  detrimental  effect  on  bilateral  relationship.  The  geographicalproximity  of India to Bangladesh has made it one of  its biggest trading partners.   There  are pressing  concerns  in  Bangladesh  regarding  the  large  bilateral  trade  deficit  with  India  and  the large  volumes  of  informal  imports  from  India  across  the  land  border  which  avoid Bangladeshi  import  duties.  Bangladesh’s  bilateral trade deficit with India has been 

increasing  rapidly  on  average  at  about  9.5%  annually.  However,  the  deficit  narrowed  for  the first  time  in  fiscal  year  2005/06 when Bangladesh’s exports rose  to  $242  million  while  India’s exports  fell  to $1.8 billion  from $2 billion in officially  recorded  exports.  For  Bangladesh,  India has now become the largest single source  of its imports.  Political  discontentment  in  Bangladesh
tends  to  stem  from  the  huge  trade  gap, supported by  the  fact  that  India has a lot of  non  trade barriers  for  Bangladeshi exports.  Even  though  exports  from Bangladesh are growing at a healthy pace, there is no sign of reducing this trade gap. The non trade barriers, as pointed out by Bangladesh Commerce Ministry, and cited by the Daily Star include:
 Laboratory  tests  in  Bangladesh, especially  for  food  products, cosmetics,  and  leather  and             textiles products.
 Packaging requirements
 Inadequate  infrastructure  facilities such  as  warehousing,  transshipment yard, parking yard and
 Connecting  roads  at  land  customs stations  also  hinder  exports  from Bangladesh;  the  la border  trade  is subject to very serious administrative constraints  in  Bangladesh.
The  most important  of  the  Customs  posts  with comprehensive  Customs  clearance powers is at Benapole, which borders Petrapole  on  the  Indian  side  and which  is  on  main  roads  linking Kolkata with Jessore and Dhaka.  As  per  the  report  by  Bangladesh Commerce  Ministry,  trade  barriers include:
 Imposition of state tax
 Anti‐dumping (AD) is one of the WTO‐legitimate  measures  introduced  by India during the 1990s,
 Countervailing duties 90%  of  industrial  tariffs  are  now  at 12.5%,  far  lower  and  far  more  uniform then  they  have  ever  been  in  the  past  50
years.
From  the  perspective  of  SAARC countries,  including  Bangladesh,  these changes  mean  that Indian  domestic markets,  for  most  manufactured  goods, are  highly  competitive,  with  prices that are close to world prices, and are likely to be  difficult  to  penetrate  even  with complete exemption from  Indian  tariffs under  bilateral  or  multilateral  free  trade arrangements  such  as those  planned under SAFTA.  Illegal and Informal Trade
Informal  trade  carried  out  through porous  land  border  between  India  and Bangladesh  adds  to the  trade  deficit, dating  back  to  the  initial  years  of Bangladesh’s  birth.  The  substantial, nformal and  unrecorded  trade,  carried across  the  India‐Bangladesh    border,  is more  quasi  legal in nature,  and  is  often described as ‘informal’ rather than illegal, since  there is   wide  participation  of local people in the border areas who operate in iaison  with  the  anti‐smuggling enforcement agencies.  Informal  trade  of this kind often involves large numbers of
local  people  individually  transporting small quantities as head loads or through bicycle rickshaws, also known as ‘bootleg’smuggling.  Another  kind  of  informal  trade,  termed ‘technical’  smuggling, involves  explicit illegal  practices  such  as  under  invoicing, misclassification  and  bribery  of Customs and  other  officials.  During  the  1990’s about  three  quarters  of  imports  were  by
land and sea which has recently shown a decline  to  between  50%  and  60%.  The cause  of concern for  Bangladesh,  thus,  is more  intense  than  that  of  India,  since much  larger  volumes  of  goods are smuggled  from  India  to  Bangladesh escaping  customs  duties.  Trade  deficit  is intertwined with  other  issues  like  trans‐shipment,  transit  and  export  of  natural gas, one of the natural resource possessed by the independent nation of Bangladesh.  In a recent visit to India, Mr. H.E. Tariq A. Karim, Bangladesh High Commissioner to India at the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New  Delhi  noted  that  “…if  India were  to  facilitate Bangladesh’s exports  to India  by  completely removing  all  tariff and  non‐tariff  barriers,  then  the  loss  in revenues  to  India  from  duties  and levies would  be  insignificant  while  in  return, huge goodwill will be created…”5 which is
actually  essential  for  a  progressive relationship between two democracies.

II

TRANSIT

Transit  was  used  by  India  with  Pakistan till  the 1965 war, after which it declined, but  with  the consequent  emergence  of Bangladesh,  it  failed  to  change. Immediately  after Bangladeshiindependence, it allowed transit in air and sea  routes  to  India while  the major issue of transit  through  road  remained unattended. While air  transit is  still widely  used  than water  transit, it  has  been  considered uncompetitive  over  the  years.  The  goods carried  from  the  Northeast  of India reaches  the  mainland  after  traversing Assam  and  North  Bengal,  taking  a  route much longer  than  what  could  have  been the shortest  through Bangladesh.  In spite of India’s frequent attempts to pursue the Bangladesh  government  to  open  transit for its economic activities, even at the cost of  a  hefty  sum,  it  has  been  continuously refused  on  grounds  that  it  is  a  possible
threat to national security. Transshipment versus Transit Transshipment  refers  to  the  shipment  of
goods  or  containers  to  an  intermediate destination,  and  then  to  yet  another
destination.  This  has  been  achieved  by India in its  relationship with Bangladesh. Transit  refers  to the  passage  of  Indian good  across  Bangladeshi  borders  to  and from  the  North  Eastern  states of Indian owned  surface  transport,  while transshipment may also refer to the same movement using Bangladesh‐owned transport.  This  remains  an  issue  of contention.  Bangladesh,  on  the  31  May, 2010  signed an agreement  to  finalize a  transshipment deal  with  India  to  allow  Indian  goods  to
be transported to the northeastern city of Tripura  in  the  state  of  Assam  through
Bangladeshi territory. Anything produced in  the  northeast  region  of  India  faces  the difficulty  of  marketing  to  the  rest  of  the country,  the  main  reason  being  the distance  to  the  port  of Kolkata.  With globalization  and  the  policy  of liberalization  no  foreign  or  private company is   going  to be inclined  to invest in the north‐east corner of India owing to several  hassles,  including the  rise  in transportation  cost.  Thus  hampering  the development of the north eastern market.  To deal  with  such  logistical  problems  of linking  the  Northeast  with  the  rest  of India,  New Delhi is left  with  the  only option  of  urging  the  reopening  of  the
northeastern  routes  through  Bangladesh to its West, and with Myanmar and south‐East  Asia  to  the East.  The  region  that  is also  rich in energy  resources like natural gas  and  hydro‐electricity  can progress, thus addressing problems that give rise to long‐  standing  grievances,  which  in  turn encourage  insurgency  surrounding  the region. The  benefits  of  transit  facility  between India  and Bangladesh  are  not  limited  to the Indian growth list. Bangladesh, whose average  GDP  is  6%  per year,  can  also become a regional hub.  Role of the Asian Development Bank
ADB  (Asian  Development  Bank)  Country Director Hua Du, pointed out in a seminar to Bangladesh,  “You  can  benefit tremendously  through  opening  up  of transit  and  great opportunities  for crossing  from east to west and giving the land‐locked  neighbours  access  to  the
sea.”6
The  controversial  issue  of  connecting Bangladesh  to  the  Asian  Highway  is sustained  by  the anti  Indian  groups  in Bangladesh.  The  Asian  highway,  also known  as  the  Great  Asian Highway,  is  a cooperative  project  among  countries  in Asia  and  Europe  and  the  United  Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and  the  Pacific  [ESCAP],  to  improve  the highway systems  in  Asia.  Anti‐India groups  in  Bangladesh  for  the  opposition of  the  Asian  highway scheme  feel  that:
 Transit  facility  once  given  is  difficult to take back.
 It may give rise to more violent acts of terrorism and insurgency
 With  the  availability  of  transit facilities  to  the  North‐eastern  Indian states  that  now  depend  on Bangladesh  for  imports  would  move towards  selling  its  own  products  to the region and Bangladesh will lose.
 There is a fear of destroying the roads and  highways  of  Bangladesh  by  the Indian  traders  and  gradually  military personnel passing through.
 There  is  an  abundant  lack  of  trust between  India  and  Bangladesh  that resulted  from  India’s  contradicted position  on  the  Farakka  Barrage  and the sharing of Ganga Water. The  Chittagong port  can  become  a modern  busy  port  like  Singapore  and China serving the SAARC countries.
  Huge  foreign  investment  may  be attracted by Bangladesh and  finally, a throbbing  servic sector  like  banks, insurance,  hotels,  rest  houses,  petrol pumps  etc.  may  develop  around  theTranscontinental roads and railways.
 There  is  an  estimate  of  direct economic  gain  from  transit  fees.  It ranges  from  500  crore  taka  to  4,666 crore taka.
 The  mutual  transit  will  give Bangladesh  a  much  shorter  route  to China and an initiative to link Chinese province  of  Yunan with  Seven Sisters of  India,  Myanmar,  Thailand  and Bangladesh.

III

WATER

For  centuries,  natural  resources  have been  a  source  of  continual  conflict between nations,though unlike oil, which till  is  a  major  cause  of  discord  between nations,  water  remains  a  less disputed issue.  But  this  varies  regionally.  In  the Middle  Eastern  and  North  African  states,water  has been  shaping  relationships within the region’s states.  The Farakka BarrageThe  origin  of  the dispute  can  be  traced back  to the  Treaty  of  Friendship, Cooperation  and  Peace  signed  by  then indian  Prime  Minister
Indira  Gandhi  and Bangladesh’s  founding  leader  and  Prime Minister  Sheik  Mujibur  Rahman on 19 March, 1972. According  to  the  treaty,  the two  nations  established  a  Joint  River Commission to  work  towards  the common  interests  and  sharing  of  water resources,  irrigation,  floods  and cyclone control.  As  per  the  treaty,  the  Farakka Barrage  was  built  in  1974,  about  10 kilometers from  the  border  of Bangladesh,  controlling  the  flow  of  the Ganges,  possessing  strong economic and religious  importance,  diverting  some  of the  water  into  a  feeder  canal  linking  the Hooghly River, keeping it silt free.With  increasing  demands  for  water  in Kolkata  for  industrial  and domestic  use, and  for  irrigational  purposes  in  other parts  of  West  Bengal,  dispute  over  the sharing  of  water  is  intensifying.  The objective  behind  the  construction  of  the Farakka Barrage was to increase the lean period  flow  of  the  Bhagirathi‐Hooghly river branch of the Ganges to increase the water  depth  at  the  Kolkata  port  which was threatened by siltation. In November 1977 the  two  countries  proposed  a  five year  agreement  on  water  sharing. However,  the  basic  issue remained unaddressed, leading to its lapse in 1982. Finally  a  comprehensive  bilateral  treaty was signed  by  the  Indian  Prime minister H.  D.  Deve  Gowda  and  his  Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina  Wajed  on  12 December, 1996. This treaty established a thirty  year  water  sharing arrangement with  guaranteed  minimum  quantities  of water  supply  for  Bangladesh,  whose lights as  a  lower  riparian  country  was recognized. The  30  year  water  sharing  treaty envisaged  that the  water  of  the  Ganges River would  be  distributed  from  Farakka for  the  two countries between 1  January and  31  May  of  each  year,  and  that  India was  required  to  maintain  the flow  of Farakka  at  the  average  level  of  the previous  40  years  including  any  critical period  when Bangladesh  would  continue to receive 35000 cusec of flow. This treaty essentially regarded the lean season flows related  to  actual  flows  at  various  levels not  exceeding  75%  dependable  flows,  as
in  past  agreements.  The  basic  formula  of equal  sharing  during  the  lean  season flows had  two modifications at  the upper and  lower  extremes.  Governmental interpretation  says  that  this  treaty is successful in settling the dispute over the sharing  of  water,  but  contrary  views  on the  part  of India  and  Bangladesh  have been  extended  over  this  treaty  that  also has the provision of being reviewed at the end  of  five  years,  or  even  at  the  end  of two years, if so wished. The Bangladeshi view suggests:
 There  was  unilateral  diversion  of Ganga  water  by  India  at  Farakka prior  to  the  30  year  water  sharing treaty.
 This  was a case of a large and more powerful  country  disregarding  the needs  and  interests  of  a  small  and weaker  neighbor,  resulting  in reduction  in  flows  that  had  serious adverse  effects  on Bangladesh.  This view  further  ascribes  to  the  big brotherly  attitude  of  India  over  her neighbours.8
 Critics  also  emphasized environmental  hazards  such  as raised  salinity  levels,  contaminated fisheries,  hindered  navigation  and  a threat  to  the  water  quality  and quantity.  Silt  levels  were believed  to have  an  adverse  effect  on  the Hooghly River and the Kolkata Port. The Indian view suggests:
 That  the  water  allocated  to Bangladesh  leaves  India  with  less water necessary for the functioning of the  Kolkata  port  and  the  National Thermal  Power  Corporation  at Farakka.
 Bangladesh  has  taken  an unnecessarily  rigid  and  unreasonable stand  on  this  issue.  Greatly overstating  its  water  needs, Bangladesh claims a disproportionate share of water. Bangladesh  High Commissioner  to  India Mr.  H.E.  Tariq  A.  Karim,  during  his address  at  the  Institute  of  Peace and Conflict  Studies  in  New  Delhi,  regarding water  sharing  between  India  and Bangladesh commented  that “Transparency  in  these  matters  is  very important…India  and  Bangladesh  must
not quibble about cusecs or percentage ofshare  and  realize  that  water  is  an intangible  asset  that does  not  recognize political  boundaries…there  should  be  an emphasis  on  water  conservation and optimum water management”.9

Teesta River Dispute 

The Teesta River enters Bangladesh near Nilphamari  district  and  courses  45 kilometers through the predominant rice‐growing districts of Rangpur, Lalmonirhat and  Gaibandha  before meeting  the Brahmaputra  River  in  Kunigram.  The Teesta  River  floodplain  that  includes the extreme  northwest  region  of  the  country accounts  for  14%  of  the  total  cropped area in  2001.  Around  63%  of  the  total cropped  area  in  the  region  is  irrigated laying  down  a direct  link  between irrigational  water  availability  and agricultural  use.  The  floodplain which  is presently considered a dry zone depends on  the  Trans  Boundary  River  flows between India and Bangladesh.  Sheikh  Hasina  in  her  three  day  visit  to India on 10 January 2010 exchanged draft agreements  on  the  Teesta  water  sharing issue  with  India, after  a  two‐day ministerial level meeting of the Joint River Commission  was  held.  While Bangladesh presented  a  draft  on  an  interim agreement,  India  presented  a  draft  of  a Statement  of Principles  on  the  sharing  of river  water  during  the  dry  season. The immediate  achievement  of  this  meeting was  the  decision  that,  within  a  year,  an agreement  over  the  Teesta  River  water sharing would be signed. It would provide key support  to agricultural production in the  northwest  region  of  Bangladesh.  One question that remained  unanswered regarded the amount of river water likely to  be  shared  between the countries. Critics  suggest  a  joint  initiative  to  be undertaken  by  India  and  Bangladesh,  to build reservoirs in both the countries that would  help  in  storing  the  excess  water during  the  rainy  season  and  utilize  it during the dry seasons. 

IV

BORDER

      Land Border       

India  and  Bangladesh  share  almost  4096 kilometers  of  land  border,  whereas official  records suggest  that  only  6.5 kilometers  of  land  along  the  Comilla‐Tripura  border is  considered  as officially disputed  by  the  governments  of  both countries.  But  the  border  disputes between Bangladesh  and  India  are  by  no means confined to demarcation problems. It  is  further  linked with  other  problems like illegal migration of people and goods and other cross border criminal activities. Within  just  six  weeks  of  partition,  the border  between  India  and  Pakistan  was drawn by Sir Cyril Radcliff on the basis of the Two Nation Theory. This provided for India’s  control  over 112  enclaves  and Bangladesh’s  control  over  32  enclaves based  on  the  religious  identities  of the inhabitants  of  those areas. An agreement was  signed  by  the  Presidents  of  the  two
countries  in  1972  but  since  it  was  not ratified  by  India  it  could  not  be  put  into
ffect.  On  the  other  hand  Bangladesh’s immediate  ratification  of  the  treaty  and the  fulfillment of its  obligation  gave  way to  the  return  of  Berubari  to  India  by Bangladesh,  while  India  gave permission to  Bangladesh  to  use  the  Tin  Bigha corridor in 1992 which would work as an entrance to  Bangladesh’s  enclaves  inside India.

Boundary Dispute

The boundary dispute between  India and Bangladesh  in  April  2001  worsened relations.  It  raised questions  about  the survival  of  the  newly  installed  Hasina government.  Border  skirmishes occurred around  the  village  of  Padua,  also  known as  Pyrdiwah,  in  India  adjoining  the  state
of  Meghalaya  and  the  Timbli  area  of Sylhet  district in  Bangladesh.  It  was  held that  India  had illegal  possession  of  the area since 1971. Attention to the disputed area  was  drawn  to Bangladesh when  the Indian  forces  attempted  to  construct  a footpath  from  an  army  outpost  in  Padua across  the  disputed  territory  some  300 meters wide  to Meghalaya. The refusal of he  Indian forces to  withdraw  led  to  the conflict that lasted from 16th to the 19th of April killing 16 Indian and 11 Bangladeshi soldiers.;  243  people  were  killed  due  to exchange of firing between security forces of both  countries, and  further led  10,000 Bangladeshi  and  1000  Indians  to  flee from  the  disputed area  because  of  the ongoing tension.  

Maritime border

While  Bangladesh,  having  concave coastlines,  delimits  its  sea  border southward  from  the  edge of  its  land boundary,  India  stretches  its  claim southeast  wards,  covering  around thousands  of miles  in  the  Bay  of  Bengal. Due  to  competing  claims  of  the  two countries,  delimitation  of the sea boundary  and  determining  Bangladesh’s exclusive economic zones have  remained unresolved. Moreover,  in  terms  of determining  the  continental shelf,  the presence  of  the  Andamans  and Nicobar Islands puts India, in a favorable position. Territorial Waters The  issue  of  demarcating territorial waters led to serious differences between the  two  countries.  Questions  of ownership over a new born island known as South Talpatty in Bangladesh and New Moore/  Purbasha  in  India spotted  by  a satellite picture in 1975 in  the estuary of Haribhanga  River  on  the  border  of  the two countries  has  been  a  source  of contention since its discovery. In order to settle  the  above  dispute Bangladesh proposed sending a joint Indo‐Bangladesh team to determine the flow of channels of the river  on  the  basis  of  existing International  Law  of  the  Sea.  But  the Indian  counterpart  sent forces  to establish  claims  by  stationing  naval troops on  the island in 1981. After initial resentment by  Bangladesh,  India  agreed to resolve the issue through negotiations. Till  now  the  sovereignty over  the  island nation  remains      undecided,  and  recent reports  of  the  press  and  media suggests that  Bangladesh  views  India  with suspicion  in  its  activities  over  the disputed piece of landmass on  the breast of an international water.

V

SECURITY CONCERNS

Illegal immigration is a perennial problem in  almost  all  nations.  Problems  of immigration considered illegal have even led  to  the  outbreaks  of  xenophobic violence  in  certain  places.  India has completed around 1357 kilometer fencing of  the international  border  with  plans  to cover another  2429  kilometer  of  border in  the  second  phase  and  also  plans  to illuminate  around  300 kilometer  of international  border  to  prevent  illegal migration.  Cooperative  measures  like joint patrolling  of  the  border  areas, consular access  to  prisons and  signing  of an  extradition  treaty are on  the  verge  of materializing as  steps  to increase  vigil  to check  drug  and  arms  trafficking,  as well as  illegal  immigration,  especially  the trafficking  women  and  children.  The Centre  for Women  and  Children  Studies based  in  Bangladesh  estimated  in  1998 that 27,000 Bangladeshis had been forced into  prostitution  in  India.  Illegal Bangladeshi  migrants  enter  Indian Territory  to settle  in  rural  areas  like Nandigram  in  West  Bengal,  as  share croppers. In  the Northeastern states like Nagaland, the  population  of  Bangladeshi,  mostly Muslim  immigrants,  have  more than
tripled  in  the  past  decade,  from  20,000 Bangladeshi immigrants in 1991, to more than 75,000 as of 2001. Drug TraffickingBangladesh 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.  As  a  result,  Bangladesh’s Department  of  Narcotic Control  has come under the scanner several times and invited  criticism. Bangladesh  has  become the  prime  transit  route  for  trafficking heroin  to  Europe  from  Southeast  Asia, according  to  a report  from  the International  Narcotics  Control  Board (INCB) 2007 annual report’10 .
INCB  notes  that  the  most  common methods and routes for smuggling heroin into  Bangladesh  are by  courier  from Pakistan,  commercial  vehicles  and  trains from India, and via sea through the Bay of Bengal  or  overland  by  truck  or  public transport from Burma. Anti Terror Cooperation The Ministry of Defence,  India, expressed its  interest  in  seeking  Bangladesh’s  ‘firm cooperation’  in fighting  anti‐India  terror and  insurgent  outfits  operating  from  its soil. The armies of both countries have, in the  past,  proved  their  might  by  fighting the  ULFA  cadres,  by,  for  example, the handing over of Arabinda Rajkowa  to  the Indian Security agencies. Bangladeshi  attempts  to cooperate  with India  on  anti‐terror  grounds,  recognized that  some  Pakistan  based  terror  outfits
had formed a strong nexus with militants in  Bangladesh,  because  of  its  close proximity to Indiawith its porous border, to  carry  out  attacks  in  India.  India  has vital  security  related concerns  vis‐à‐vis Bangladesh  such  as  sanctuaries  enjoyed by  indigenous  Indian  ethnic  terrorist organizations like ULFA, activities of trans border  Islamic  terrorist  groups  like Muslim  Liberation Tigers  of  Assam (MULTA),  the  Independent  Liberation Army  of  Assam  (ILAA)  and  the People United  Liberation  Front  (PULF),  the activities  from  Bangladesh  territory  of pro‐AL  Qaeda organizations  of  Pakistani origins  supported  by  the  ISI  such  as  the LeT,  HuJI,  and  Harkat‐ul‐Mujahideen (HuM),  gun  running  in  India’s  northeast from  and  through  Bangladesh,  illegal migration  into  Assam  and  West  Bengal, the  flow  of  funds  from  Wahabi  charity organizations in  Saudi  Arabia  to fundamentalist  elements  in  Bangladesh‐India  region,  money  laundering through India‐Nepal and  India‐Bangladesh region, etc.  India  is  often  seen  as  a  big  power  with hegemonistic  tendencies  amongst  its neighbors  in  the  subcontinent. Bangladesh,  in  relation  to India,  has  to take  note  of  the  large  anti‐Indian sentiments  presiding  in  its  soil.  After  all, no successful  democracy  can  avoid  the feelings  and  sentiments  of  its  people.  In fact,  the sustenance  of  a  democracy depends on the will of the people, and the performance of a democracy is measured by the scale of fulfillment of the wishes of its people.

VI

EXTERNAL INFLUENCES

A  perplexing  issue  the  Prime  minister  of Bangladesh faced before her visit to India in  January 2010  was  whether  to  visit India  or  China  first.  Bangladesh,  has always  used  China  as  a counter  balance against  India,  was  generous  this  time towards  India,  when  Prime  Minister
Sheikh Hasina decided  to visit her  Indian counterpart,  Prime  Minister  Manmohan Singh first.
A  major  setback  to  the  enthusiasm  in India of Hasina’s visit, came in the form of her  visit  to China immediately  after  that, wherein  a  communiqué  was  issued, consisting  of  similar  transit facilities given  to  China  as  given  to  India. Bangladesh  sought  Chinese  assistance  in constructing  a  highway  passing  through Myanmar  to  Yunan  province  in  China.  A rail  network passing  through  the  same area  has  been  proposed. Bangladesh was also  reportedly  engaged  in persuading China  to  further  develop  and  use  the Chittagong  port  and  develop  a  deep  sea port at  Sonadia  Island.  This  becomes problematic  for  India  who  fears  China’s access  to  the Myanmar  naval  base  in Hanggyi  Islands  and  the  monitoring station,  established  at  Coco  Island  in  the north  of  India’s  Andaman  and  Nicobar Islands.  India  fears China encircling  India as part of its String of Pearls strategy. The relationship  between  China  and Bangladesh  since  1975 influences Bangladesh  to  move  away  from  India. Bangladesh  maintains  a  very  close relationship  with  China  for  its  economic and military needs.11  Over the years, the two sides have signed a  plethora  of  bilateral  agreements including  economic  engagements,  soft loans,  social contacts,  cultural exchanges, academic  interactions,  infrastructural development  and  military sales at reduced  prices,  with  China  emerging  as the  major  supplier  of  arms  to Bangladesh’s  armed forces.  China  and Bangladesh  along  with  Myanmar,  have decided  to  build  the  900  kilometer Kunming  Highway  linking  Chittagong with  Kunming  through  Myanmar  to facilitate  greater trade.  Dhaka‐Beijing relations  have  reached  new  heights  as China  overtook  India  as Bangladesh’s largest  trading  partner.  In  addition  to economic  engagement,  Bangladesh  and China  in  2005  signed  the  Bangladesh‐China  Cooperation  Agreement  on  the Peaceful  Usage  of Nuclear  Energy  which aims  to  assist  Bangladesh  in  developing peaceful  nuclear  energy  for power generation  and  other  developmental purposes  and  a  Defense  Cooperation Agreement with China in 2002. India,  considers  South  Asia  as  its backyard,  exerting  influence  over  it,  and so  a growing  relationship  between  China and  Bangladesh  is  visualized  by  India  as potentially problematic.  Bangladesh  tries to bargain between  India and China,  thus standing  only  to  gain. Apart  from  that, Bangladesh’s  government  over  the  years has  been  characterized  by  one favoring India, and one against it. Additionally, the Chinese  quest  for  regional  power  and
hen  global  power  should  be  taken  into account.  This  quest  is  based  on  the sustained and dedicated engagement with India’s  neighbors  for  access  and  basing. Therefore,  Bangladesh  has been  an obvious choice for partnership.

VI

CONCLUSIONS

Bangladesh‐India relations over the years reflect  the  prominence  of  coercive elements  in  India’s hegemonic  role  in South Asia. This perception will affect the development  of  long  term institutional relationships  with  smaller  neighbors  of South  Asia.  This  was  clearly  reflected  in
India’s  aversion  towards  multilateral cooperation  frameworks  like  SAARC  and the  lack  of reciprocation  in  trade  and economic  cooperation  with  countries,  as seen with Bangladesh. The United  States’  hegemony  over  the years  achieved  a  boost  with  its involvement  with  smaller and  weaker neighboring  allies  in  several  economic and  security  cooperation  ventures  like the  NATO  and  NAFTA.  But  India’s influence  in  a  regional  context  results  in discontentment  on the  part  of  weaker states.  Thus,  India  should  rely  on  an institutional  doctrine  with  greater involvement  with  smaller  and  weaker neighboring  states  with  an  aim  to  aid their  efforts  to develop  themselves  in various fields.  The  history  of  the  formation  of  the European  Union  as  a powerful  regional bloc  shows  a  greater  compromise  on  the part  of  bigger  states  like  France and Germany  to  achieve  regional  cohesion and  peaceful  relations.  India,  too,  should prepare itself  to  compromise  on  certain fronts if regional cohesion and peace is to be achieved. India’s relationship  with  all  South  Asian countries  should  not  be  dictated  by  its relationship  with Pakistan  and  China, with  whom  it  has  undergone  prolonged conflict  and  competition.  If  India wishes to  continue  its  relationship  with Bangladesh,  it  needs  to  take  a  good  look at  the stand it takes  towards other South Asian countries also. A hegemonic stance by India would have significant impact on the Indo‐Bangladesh relations.

TEESTA, LAND BOUNDARY AND IMMIGRATION

TEESTA, LAND BOUNDARY AND IMMIGRATION

What are Bangladesh’s expectations from the new government in New Delhi? Bangladesh largely views Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a controversial, polarising Hindu-nationalist leader, whose pre-elections statements have instilled feelings of suspicion and resentment amongst them. Recently, when the media in Bangladesh ran reports of Modi attempting to establish a separate department in the India Ministry of Home Affairs to combat illegal Bangladeshi immigrants, the general public echoed a huge uproar of anti-Indian sentiments.

Bangladesh has long suffered a sense of non-deliverance from India on issues such as the failure in reaching a consensus on the sharing of Teesta River waters; the failure to implement the land boundary agreement and its protocol; and hindrances arising from the Indian immigration policies. This has contributed towards the erosion of reciprocity and goodwill that India had secured amongst the Bangladeshis. For Bangladesh, despite having several long-running issues to settle with India, lately, three issues top their agenda.

Teesta River Water Sharing Agreement
Water-sharing has been a contentious issue between New Delhi and Dhaka. India has consistently disappointed Bangladesh vis-à-vis the Teesta River water sharing agreement. Previously, India’s United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government failed to conclude the Teesta water sharing agreement amid West Bengal Chief Minister Mamta Banerjee’s opposition to the deal. The consequence of not reaching an agreement still affects Bangladesh. Bangladesh’s northwest region faces acute water shortages due to climate change. Therefore, dependency on the Teesta for irrigation, particularly during the dry season is rising. Bangladesh senses that intensive water diversion by India has led to its water scarcity situation—preventing Bangladesh to meet the demands of its rapidly-growing population. It is projected that it will dry up the Padma – one of Bangladesh’s three key rivers. Furthermore, the upper riparian India's withdrawal of the Teesta waters has severe environmental implications while simultaneously increasing the expenditures for Bangladeshi farmers by over 10 times.

Bangladesh also remains concerned of the poor water governance in the Teesta basin. Intense pressure from home has forced the Bangladeshi government to pressurise India to quickly resolve the issue. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, despite having had vehemently opposed the agreement in the past, have assured its positive intentions towards the agreement – that Bangladesh views with skepticism.

The 1974 Land Boundary Agreement
Bangladesh feels that India has consistently disappointed Bangladesh in terms of honouring the Indira Gandhi-Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) of 1974. The agreement between the two countries to better demarcate the 4,000-kilometer border by exchanging small pieces of land has been ratified by the Bangladeshi parliament, but it awaits ratification by India. The implementation of this agreement is a priority for Bangladesh is the as they will receive 111 enclaves spanning 17,149 acres. Furthermore, people residing in the enclaves want recognition as citizens of the country inside which these enclaves are situated. The exchange of enclaves will make the India-Bangladesh border more manageable. Dhaka expects the BJP government in India to ratify the agreement this time around. Hopefully, Modi, with a full majority, may not have to look elsewhere to gather support for the implementation of the LBA.

Illegal Immigration
According to Bangladesh, inter alia, the most important facet in the New Delhi-Dhaka bilateral is the issue of illegal immigration of Bangladeshis into India. In part, the problem is due to the population of Bangladeshi migrants illegally residing in India. Bangladesh, however, raises serious doubts regarding this. Recently, former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia doubted its occurrence. According to Zia, many Bangladeshis do not migrate to India since they ‘all are doing quite well at home’.

Adding fuel to the fire, Modi, in his pre-election campaign, referred to the Bangladeshi migrants as “infiltrators” and called for immediate deportation post-victory. Such stances were a jolt for Bangladesh. The matter of illegal immigration negatively affects bilateral relations and Dhaka expects New Delhi to remain sensitive towards. Swaraj’s Dhaka visit confirmed relaxed visa policies for Bangladeshi nationals above the age of 65 and below the age of 13—making them eligible for a five-year multiple entry visa.

Will Dhaka Find Deliverance this Time Around?
It is true that Narendra Modi has exemplified charm in attracting a large number of Indian voters. The Lok Sabha Elections of 2014 placed him at the helm, but the Indian prime minister has to deliver to Bangladesh what they feel India has been reluctant to provide. A feeling of reciprocity and goodwill in the hearts and minds of neighbouring Bangladeshis is currently absent. Bangladesh feels that Modi must demonstrate his capacities as a statesman, secure India’s vital interests vis-à-vis respect, and identify and fulfill the aspirations of its neighbourhood – primarily Bangladesh.

Swaraj’s Dhaka visit may be seen as a step in the right direction to strengthen bilateral ties with the country. Whether New Delhi will deliver to Dhaka’s aspirations is to be seen. The unencumbered BJP government is expected to move beyond the political maneuvers and take a more responsible approach in resolving these pending issues.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN BANGLADESH AND ELECTIONS 2007

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN BANGLADESH AND ELECTIONS 2007

Opening Remarks : Maj. Gen. (Retd.) Dipankar Banerjee

Bangladesh is a neighbour and since geography cannot be changed, it is a reality India will have to contend with. Bilateral relations with Bangladesh have not been very cordial for the last few years and the Foreign Secretary, Shiv Shanker Menon, has gone so far as to call Bangladesh a "conundrum" as far as India is concerned. In this context, the upcoming elections may be an important landmark in the political history of Bangladesh and affect India-Bangladesh relations.

Speaker: IP Khosla

Bangladesh is indeed a conundrum. To study Bangladesh however, what is required is to separate all of its major processes and to review them, one by one. Such a process would enable us to think about Bangladesh more clearly.

The first category is that of Bangladesh's socio-cultural reality. Bangladesh is a highly egalitarian society with an Islamic-Bangla culture. On human development as well as on the GINI index, Bangladesh stands higher than India. In South Asia, Bangladesh has the highest primary school enrolment. Despite its being an Islamic society, the enrolment of females in educational institutes is also very good. Infant mortality is also lower than in India and women's life expectancy is longer than in India. Thus in social spheres, Bangladesh ranks better than India. There is an enormous effort made by the non-governmental sector to ameliorate poverty. Thus the contention that disparities in income levels leads to discontent and is the source of political disorder, becomes problematic when we consider Bangladesh.

The second category is the rise of Islam. The rise of Islamic practice among the political leadership has become prominent within Bangladesh in recent years. While the populace in Bangladesh actively practices Islam, it does not necessarily support Islamic parties. In the pre-Liberation elections, Islamic parties received only 9-10 per cent of the vote. This has continued even though Islam is now a part of the constitution. There is a move by the mullahs to legislate laws that conform to the Shariat. Haseena's alliance with the BKM (Bangladesh Khilafat Majlish) is another step in this direction. The BKM is part of the Islamic Oikya Jote whose leadership is connected to the HUJI which had participated in Afghanistan in the form of the radical mujahideen. It would not be surprising if something like the MMA or a religious policy developed in Bangladesh in the future, the way Islam is being pushed by the leadership in Bangladesh. Nationalism in Bangladesh is now not language-based but linked now to the ability of the leadership to create an Islamic identity.

The third category is the state machinery. The Bangladeshi parliament is not fully functional. There is very little participation by the opposition in parliamentary proceedings. Political events occur mainly on the streets. The judiciary too is increasingly becoming a political instrument as is the civil service. All these institutions are exploited by political parties for short-term gains. The caretaker government too is party to political manipulation and it is uncertain whether the institution will last till the next elections.

The fourth category relates to the cult of violence. Violence has become part of the political routine in Bangladesh. As far as the impact of terrorism on India is concerned, it is nil. Bangladeshi support to terrorism is linked to the army. No one will deem credible the idea that India or Myanmar will attack Bangladesh. Yet the army is geared towards protecting Bangladesh from India's designs. Terror camps are run by the army and it is repeatedly stated that the Northast is Bangladesh-blocked. The army will attempt to seize power only in two scenarios - in case of prolonged violence or if the elections are sabotaged. It is however not interested in taking over the government per se.

The elections in Bangladesh will certainly be held as both political parties are keen on them. Many pro-BNP people have been removed from the caretaker government to make it acceptable to the Awami League. However, as the cult of violence grows, this may be the last time that elections will be held in an orderly fashion.

Discussion

Bhabani Sengupta

There is a dearth of news and information on Bangladesh in India. This makes it very difficult for Indians to gain insights on Bangladesh. The role of the media has been trivialized in India. Issues pertaining to Indian foreign policy do not make headlines but sex and sleaze do.

A pertinent question to ask would be how important is Bangladesh for India. There are two Punjabs and two Bengals and the kind of affinity that exists between the former is absent in the latter. When IK Gujaral and Nawaz Sharif were Prime Ministers of their respective countries, though they never met formally, they spoke in Punjabi with each other creating a sense of 'Punjabiyat'. A common language can greatly enhance interactions between states. Unfortunately there is no "Bangaliyana' when New Delhi interacts with Dhaka. Though Buddhadeb Bhattacharya is a very popular chief minister, he has never been invited for a visit by the Bangladeshi government.

Music and other such cultural exchanges can go a long way in strengthening ties between India and Bangladesh. However, Bangladeshi television programs that are telecast in Kolkata do not have a great number of viewers. This is despite the fact that the songs and poetry of Rabindranath Tagore are equally popular in India and Bangladesh. In fact, the national anthems of both countries are works of Tagore.

Indians do not buy books from Bangladesh and vice versa. Even people from Kolkata are not very keen on buying books from Bangladesh. This can be attributed to the fact the Bengalis from Kolkata consider their own work as being of extremely high standards and consider Bangladeshi works to be substandard. Bangladeshi magazines do not come to Kolkata and vice versa. However, Bangladeshis participating in the Kolkata Book Fair do buy Bengali books by Indian authors. Indians,though seem to be unconcerned as far as gaining knowledge on Bangladesh is concerned.

There is a lack of reporting and analysis of events in Bangladesh in India. In this regard, the approach of China needs mention. It has fourteen neighbours and has good relations with almost all of them. It is the largest trading partner for South Korea, North Korea and the ASEAN countries. There is an unuttered fear in India that China will replace it as the dominant power in South Asia and that its attempt at strengthening relations with Bangladesh is a step in this direction. Its presence in Bangladesh is bigger than that of India. China's foreign policy espouses 'harmony at home and harmony abroad'. The influence of India in the neighbourhood has waned in the past few years. Sadly, howver, India is doing nothing about it. There is a distinct coolness between the policy makers of India and Bangladesh, almost amounting to indifference towards each other. There is no debate on Bangladesh in India.

The Khaleda Zia-led Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is considered to be anti-Indian whereas the Awami League is viewed as having pro-India sentiments. However, the Awami League -India bonhomie increasingly appears to be a thing of the past. The opposition, unlike in India, has absolutely no role to play in Bangladesh.

Vidya Shankar Aiyar

There is a lack of expertise in the media on international political issues in general. Though 'experts' and analysts on Pakistan are available in plenty, the same is not true for the other neighbours of India. It is still possible to focus on Sri Lanka as one can go to Chennai and find someone to comment on developments there, but the national media in India never gets to the point of covering Bangladesh. However, the events leading up to the 2007 general elections there ,are being covered by the electronic media round the clock and also by a few newspapers.

Sreeradha Dutta

The media coverage of Track-II discussions is phenomenal in Bangladesh. But the same is not true for India. In fact, most of the meetings do not even make it as a snippet in the national newspapers.

In Bangladesh, the state has receded to the background. In the villages, the Jamaat cadres provide services in the form of schools and hospitals. This is one of the main reasons why women have not objected to Jamaat diktats, such as those asking them to wear burqas. As long as healthcare is provided to their children and family by the Jamaat cadres, donning a burqa is not an issue with them.

Sanjay Hazarika

The Indian government and the Indian Army do not apprehend northeast as separating itself from India.

As far as migration is concerned, the policy of Bangladesh is ambiguous. At the official level, it does not recognize the phenonmenon but the Bangladeshi Army and certain scholars have actually begun to accept the reality of migration.

Bangladeshi migrants are always projected as stooges of the ISI. But this is an extremely ignorant view as most of the migrants are ordinary people who cross over to the Indian side to earn their bread and butter. There is a problem in the Northeast not because of Bangladesh but due to the failure of the policies of the Indian government.

Human trafficking is a bigger threat to Bangladesh than terrorism. Besides that, the secular views in Bangladesh also need to be strengthened. There are people like Imtiaz Ahmad of the Dhaka University and Mahfuz Hasan of the Daily Star who are outspoken, impartial and secular in their views and are therefore disliked by both the BNP and Awami League. The important question is how to strengthen these secular voices.

Bangladesh does not have sweeping Islamic traditions. When the bombers blew themselves up outside the High Court last year, their family members refused to accept their bodies for burial and disowned them on the ground that suicide was unIslamic and a devout Muslim would never indulge in violent activities. Also the work of Islamic NGOs while significant does not match those of the intnernational NGOs. Bangladesh depends heavily on international NGOs for its roads, hospitals and other infrastructural requirements. In Kurigram, the roads and the only hospital there have been built by a Swiss NGO.

Greater interaction is required between Indian and Bangladeshi academics. Perhaps the best CBM is the cultural one. Indian movies, movie stars and music have been much appreciated in Bangladesh. Utilizing these in Track-II discussions may prove to be more productive vis-?-vis the Bangladeshis while also ensuring media coverage in India. India has also to understand that political capital in the form of goodwill is far greater than the economic gains from the relationship.

India is Bangladesh-blocked. In fact, Bangladesh is India's link to Southeast Asia. In India there is a tendency to consider Bangladesh as part of the Northeast and that is India's biggest folly. The resonance of history continues to be strong. Asking Bangladesh to be a sub-region will not be acceptable to Dhaka. So the relations between these two countries will continue to be New Delhi and Dhaka-driven. The Awami League-BKM alliance might only be political in nature and is aimed at cutting the Jamaat vote.

Dipankar Banerjee

There is a lack of communication between India and Bangladesh and the level of understanding of each other is appalling. Both countries have reached a point where all they do is demonize each other. Bangladesh has some outstanding scholars and its academia has tremendous potential. But India continues to shut itself off from Bangladesh.

Bangladeshi migrants have played an important role in nation building in many countries. One has just to look at the skyscrapers of Singapore and Malaysia, which have been built by Bangladeshi labour. Even in India, the labour provided by Bangladeshi migrants is noteworthy and largely advantageous to India. India has to identify the level of threat posed by migration from Bangladesh.

However, Bangladesh did contribute in substantial numbers to the Al Qaeda. Former military officials did good business by exporting Bangladeshi nationals to be trained and recruited by the Al Qaeda. It is also virtually impossible to seal the Indian border with Bangladesh considering that it is a single economic zone. India has to chart out a clear policy vis-?-vis Bangladesh.

Eric Gonsalves

The main thrust of media world over is on local news. So Indian media is just a part of the trend and therefore should not be singled out. Bangladesh is not a high priority of the Indian government. During the BJP government, Jaswant Singh took three to four years to make a visit to any neighbouring country. Bhutan, Maldives and Myanmar have fairly friendly relations with India. Nepal, like Sri Lanka is not that big a problem anymore. Whenever there is a possibility to work out joint projects at a regional level, however, it is South Block that backs out. India continues to have problems with Bangladesh and the present government has bungled its relations with Bangladesh. There is a need for a change in attitude towards Bangladesh. Like India, political parties in Bangladesh are also personality driven with little or no emphasis on concrete policies.

Cdr. Alok Bansal

Indian NGOs too are active in Bangladesh. The Ramakrishna Mission runs hospitals in Bangladesh. During the last election, the Indian government backed both the Awami League and the BNP. The average Bangladeshi wants good relations with India but this policy does win India any gains. Perhaps India should decide on only one party to back and formulate its policy accordingly.

Concluding Remarks : IP Khosla

There is an increase in the influence of Islamic fundamentalism worldwide. Indonesia and Malaysia are examples of this. After 9/11 and the subsequent invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, Islamic fundamentalism has reached a new high. Bangladesh should be considered as a part of this trend. Before partition, Pashtoonistan in Pakistan, for example, was highly secular and wanted to join India but things have changed and it was there that MMA was started.

India should remove all tariffs and duties on goods to facilitate trade with Bangladesh. This will go a long way in reducing anti-India sentiments and will help strengthen the economy in Bangladesh. A strong economy is an important condition for political stability and the consolidation of democracy

Security of Bangladesh in the South Asian Context

Security of Bangladesh in the South Asian Context

Bangladesh is in a cross-road. Its geo-political location draws an immediate international focus. With a population of 160 million in a small territory of 147,000 square kilometers it is surrounded by India on three sides and not very far in the north by China. On its south is the Bay of Bengal stretching to the vast Indian Ocean and on the east there is a small border with Myanmar. Nepal is just next door separated by a narrow strip of Indian territory.

The emergence of the two powerful states, both striving not only to achieve economic strength but aspire to play an important role in the centerstage of global politics, is now a reality. Hence in this region, as a part of their global role, lie the strategic and security interests of the United States.

Economically Bangladesh is doing well, better than most of the countries in South Asia with a sustained annual growth rate of around 6.2% for more than a decade now, with the hope of reaching the level of the middle income group in another five years. In the social sectors particularly in health care and education, according to the Noble Laureate Professor Amartya Sen the performance of Bangladesh is better than India.

Tragically, on the other hand, unlike India, Bangladesh has failed to build strong institutions to sustain a democratic order. It has experienced a one-party rule in 1975 and two successive governments of military Generals before it could return to a democratic order in 1991by holding a free, fair and neutral election under a non-party caretaker government, a system later sanctioned by the Constitution, continued till it was disrupted again in January 2007 by a military-backed Proclamation of Emergency. I generally do not criticize our sitting government when I am abroad, but the crises we have at home need to be mentioned as it is linked to our security as well. Lack of democratic practices and the election having been boycotted by the opposition (Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)), has led to have in January 2014 a Parliament where 154 Members out of a total 300 have been elected unopposed declining more than 50 million voters to cast their votes on the polling day. In the remaining 147 seats there was hardly any election as the contesting candidates belonged to the same ruling alliance and they won by rigging and occupying polling centers, keeping the voters away from casting their votes. Because of having for all practical purposes a one-party government and their suppression of opposition, a political vacuum exists in the country creating opportunities for the extremist forces to take advantage of the situation. It is argued that in order to contain and resist the rising terrorism in Bangladesh two immediate steps ought to be taken:
1. hold immediately a free and fair election in order to have an  accountable elected government and
2. unite the people under a national platform comprising of all sections of people irrespective  of political affiliations.

Rise of Islamic Militancy
The rise of Islamic militancy in Bangladesh is not a recent phenomenon. It has been an issue of security not only of Bangladesh but all the neighboring countries and particularly India. The origins of this militancy could be traced back to 1980’s when the Talibans backed by the United States were fighting to throw out the ‘infidel communists’ from their ‘holy land’ of Afghanistan. Most of the militant leaders in Bangladesh claim to have been trained by the Talibans and taken part in the war against the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan.

Between 1996 and 2001 when Awami League was in the government, 8-major incidents of bomb explosions had taken place causing more than 25 deaths. The militancy intensified during the period BNP was in the government between 2001 and 2006. Besides many other incidents, in 6 Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) suicide bomb attacks 33 people were killed and 450 injured. On 21 August 2004 in a grenade attack launched at a public rally aiming to kill Sheikh Hasina, miraculously saved, killed 24 persons and 200 injured. The attack was later claimed to have been made by Harkat-ul-Jihad. On 17 August 2005 the JMB carried out simultaneous explosions of 478 bombs in 63 out of 64 Districts of the country mostly aimed at the courts and the government buildings. Between 17 August to 8 December of the same year in 7 major bomb attacks militants killed 30 people and another 400 injured. JMB by the time had developed a countrywide network but the BNP government in October 2005 was able to arrest all the leaders of JMB and Harkat-ul-Jihad. In a high-profile trial, on 29 May 2006, 7 top leaders were convicted and sentenced to death and in their appeals the High Court Division confirmed the verdict and the Supreme Court had done the same. In March 2007, out of those 7, 6 senior leaders were hanged to death for killing a sub-ordinate judge.

In recent months absence of a participatory democracy has encouraged the extremists and fanatic groups to go underground to take 17 valuable human lives which included bloggers, publishers, some members of Hindu community, a Priest of a Church, a Moazzin of a Mosque, a Saint of a Buddhist Temple, two young same-sex activists and wife of a senior police officer.

The latest horror created by some young educated terrorists killing 20 people, of them 17 foreigners including 1 Indian, at a restaurant on 1st July in Gulshan in the heart of the diplomatic enclave of the capital, followed by another attack close to the largest Eid congregation of the country on 7 July at Sholakia, Kishoreganj killing 4 persons including 2 policemen and 20 injured: all added a new dimension in the security concerns of Bangladesh. The incident mourned as ‘Gulshan tragedy’ stunned the nation to see not only the brutal killing of 17 foreigners at a time but to find that the killers were English-educated youths of well-to-do middle class families, not from the religion-based Madrasas as perceived so long. These killings and the government’s failure to track down the killers has caused a great amount of uncertainty, fear and a sense of insecurity in all sections of people. The United States and some other countries have indicated that these incidents are linked with ISIS, which the Bangladesh government vehemently denies.

Very recently soon after the Gulshan tragedy the Assistant Secretary of State Ms Nisha Desai Biswal on an urgent visit to Bangladesh has categorically stated that United States thinks that there are international connections with the rising terrorism in Bangladesh and she formally offered to provide technical assistance to the law enforcing agencies in Bangladesh to combat terrorism. The government is considering the proposal. As for India, besides the problems she has of similar nature, rise of militancy in Bangladesh is a matter of great concern for Delhi administration also. Besides the investments made in many sectors, any disruption in the transit facilities and the trading business of 7 billion dollars certainly raises question of security for India.

Chittagong Hill Tracts
Another area of security concern is the insurgency in Chittagong Hill Tracts bordering with India, which has been a focus of international attention for a long time. It is situated in the northeastern part of the country comprising of three districts Bandarban, Khagrachari and Rangamati. The tribal population is about 500,000 with non-tribal settlers around 450,000, they occupy a large territory, almost one-fifth of the total area of Bangladesh. The demand for self-rule by the tribal people has been a source of embarrassment to every government in Bangladesh. It has led to armed conflicts, confrontations, reprisals and military actions. However through all the efforts of successive governments finally in December 1997 the Awami League government with Indian support was able to sign a Peace Treaty with Jotindra Bodhpriya Larma known as Shantu Larma who represented the insurgent organization Jana Sanghati with an armed wing in the name of Shanti Bahini. But despite this Peace Treaty which helped in reducing tension and armed conflicts, for two major reasons peace could not be fully restored and the entire area remain to be vulnerable as a section of the tribal people still continue with their insurgency for a self-rule.

1. The provisions relating to land ownership and negation of right to vote of the settlers were in conflict with the Constitution and unless this issue was resolved, the settlers from the mainland will not have the access to cast their votes on the ground that they did not own any land to be eligible to be voters.
2. Due to this constitutional conflict and some other legal and administrative predicaments no election could be held for more than three decades to allow elected tribal leaders to run their own affairs in the Hill Tracts.

Rohingyas
The frequent influx of Rohingya refugees entering into Bangladesh from Myanmar is another great security concern. There are still 300,000 Rohingyas infiltrated and scattered all over Bangladesh and the neighboring countries particularly India causing threat to law and order and security of the states. The flow of the Rohingya Refugees go on increasing whenever Myanmar army intensifies their torture and repression upon them as a part of their ethnic cleansing.

Relationship with India
The relationship between our two countries, other than having some occasional tensions on sharing of water and border killings by BSF, has remained most of the time stable no matter which party has been in the government. In recent years however our relationship has reached a much higher scale particularly from the year 2009 when the Awami League returned to power again.  People in Bangladesh realise that India being a large powerful neighbor, our relationship should be friendly and harmonious. The critical issues Bangladesh has with India included:

Land Boundary Agreement
The implementation of the Land Boundary Agreement signed between Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Mrs. Indira Gandhi in 1974 bas been a demand of Bangladesh for a long time. The agreement provided demarcation of the land boundary between the two countries on the transfer of 111 enclaves situated in India to Bangladesh and 51 such enclaves held in Bangladesh to handover to India. Bangladesh on their part had already acted upon the agreement by way of amending its constitution in the same year in November 1974 but India could not do so for over 40 years. This long delay caused lot of irritation between our two countries.

In 2014 the BJP government had taken initiative to implement the agreement and had the Constitution 119th Amendment (bill was introduced by the last government in 2013) passed unanimously by the Parliament in May 2015. In less than a month Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi during his first visit to Bangladesh on 6 June agreed to complete the physical implementation of the agreement. In the month of July the process of exchanging the enclaves continued and by the month of August transfer of 162 enclaves and respective people so long lived without any national identity was completed. With this ended a long standing issue between the two countries.

Maritime Zone
Having failed to arrive at an amicable settlement for nearly 35 years Bangladesh in October 2009 instituted arbitral proceedings against India pursuant to Annex VII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. India contested in the proceedings before the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (Arbitration Tribunal) who delivered its award on 7 July 2014, in which Bangladesh has been awarded 19,467 sq km, four-fifth of the total area of 25,602 sq km of disputed maritime boundary in the Bay of Bengal and the award has clearly delineated the course of maritime boundary line between India and Bangladesh. The award has recognized India’s sovereignty over New Moore Island and it received nearly 6000 sq km of the contested zone where the Island had once existed. Both the countries have accepted the award

Settlement of this complicated dispute by way of an arbitral award and the implementation of the Land Boundary Agreement have been great diplomatic achievements for both the countries. This peaceful resolution of the disputes has no doubt ensured more peace and security not only for two of us but for the entire South Asia.

Water Sharing
Sharing of water of all the international rivers that flow between our two countries has been the most contentious issue between Bangladesh and India. 53 rivers flow from India downstream to Bangladesh upon which for centuries life, ecology, security and economy of millions of people depended. Bangladesh being a lower riparian country has suffered most because of the dams and barrages built in the upstream by India to divert the water for their own use. On the question of sharing of water of the Ganges at the Farakka Barrage a new Treaty for a period of 30 years was signed in 1997 but till now no progress has been made in respect of sharing of water of other major rivers. On the sharing of water at the Tista Barrage no treaty could yet be signed. When Mr. Manmohan Singh the then Prime Minister visited Bangladesh in 2011 with a prior announcement that the agreement would be signed on sharing of Tista River water the expectation rose high but it failed at the last moment because of the objection from the government of West Bengal.

India on their own has been working on a Mega Project to divert water from all the major rivers through the difficult terrain above the north of Bangladesh without any consultation with the lower riparian country. Brahmaputra, originating from China is the largest river of this region. India by taking advantage of being an upper riparian country has gone on implementing their projects for diversion of water. But in recent years as China is preparing a huge scheme for utilization of the water of Brahmaputra, India has now found itself in the same position demanding of China consultation for sharing of the water of Brahmaputra as Bangladesh has been demanding of India as a lower riparian country.

The most rational approach would be to develop an integrated comprehensive joint plan for water management and resources of this region as a whole by the participation of all the countries which will include Nepal and China. This battle for water can be turned into a battle for prosperity of this entire region. This will also provide generation of electricity to meet the demands of all the neighboring countries.

Transit facilities for India
One of India’s most persistent demands was to allow transit facilities for the transportation of goods through our land to its seven land-locked northeastern states which would drastically cut down the distance and the cost of such transportation to India’s favour. For example the distance between Agartala (Tripura, India) and Kolkata is 1600 kilometers which now will come down to less than 100 kilometers between Agartala and the nearest sea port in Chittagong (Bangladesh).

There has been a widespread public resentment amongst the people against giving transit facilities on land to India as many fear that if such access is given, the security of Bangladesh will be under constant threat. But despite such apprehension and fear the government moved forward to allow the transit on economic grounds and they believe that such co-operation with India will not only strengthen the friendship between the two countries, but will also generate a huge revenue  from granting such facilities to India. The agreements for transit were signed between the two parties when the Prime Minister of Bangladesh visited India in January 2010. In order to implement the agreements building of sufficient infrastructure was necessary for which India offered a loan of one billion dollar under a separate agreement signed. In 2016 the transit facilities have been officially opened for India to take goods on land through Bangladesh to their northeast region. The transit facilities will also ease India’s security concerns in respect of its 7 vulnerable North-Eastern States.

Immigration
Cross border migration, legal or illegal, is another sensitive issue between all the countries in South Asia. Human trafficking and illegal immigration is an issue of security for all of South Asia

South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC)
The South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC), a forum for social and economic development by mutual co-operation between the countries of this region established in 1985 has not yet fully blossomed. If this organization could be made functional and effective it would have been easier for ensuring peace and security in South Asia.

Joint Action Against Terrorism
In order to contain any kind of terrorism a more pro-active joint effort is an imperative now. Recently our Prime Minister has said in the Parliament that there are “22 terrorist groups working in Bangladesh.” Most of them are unknown and ‘homegrown’ but there are three major organizations who claim to have international connections. The most prominent ones are Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), Hizbut Tahrir and Ansarullah Bangla Team. All of them are banned by law.

Despite the fact that all the principal leaders of JMB and Harkat-ul-Jihad are either hanged or in jail but still there are some militant terrorist groups who continue to operate in the name of Islam under different banners and names. Although in Bangladesh we have two sharply divided large and contending political parties but on the issue of containing terrorism there is a unity. There is also unanimity between the two political parties to not to allow any of the state territories to have any camp or armed groups to operate to the detriment of the other.

Bangladesh and India will have to work together urgently, if necessary with international support, to eliminate the forces of terrorism in this region.