Narendra Modi ignores protocol to receive Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at Delhi airport
The leaders of the two neighbouring countries are likely to discuss and sign 25 agreements.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday broke the protocol and went to Delhi airport to receive his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina. Asansol MP and Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Babul Supriyo accompanied Modi to the airport, reported ANI.
Hasina, who is visiting India for the first time since Modi became the PM in 2014, will be here for four days. The leaders of the two neighbouring countries are likely to discuss and sign 25 agreements. Besides, Hasina is scheduled to visit Ajmer Sharif and attend a ceremony to honour Indian Armed Forces members who lost their lives in the Bangladesh’s War of Liberation in 1971, reported The Indian Express. Apart from Modi, the Bangaldesh prime minister will also hold talks with Indian business leaders on Monday.
India is likely to announce a line of credit of $500 million (around Rs 3,220 crore) to Bangladesh for military supplies, according to PTI. Indian credit lines are announced without identifying a project. However, this amount is much lower than what Chinese President Xi Jinping had promised – $24 billion – during his day-long visit to Dhaka last year. But, Bangladeshi officials had displayed skepticism about their ability to absorb the Chinese grant.
Another key issue that is likely to come up during the discussions is the Teesta water sharing agreement. In 2011, when former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had visited Dhaka to sign many agreements, including Teesta, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerji had claimed that an unfair water agreement would hurt the people of the state. This time, Hasina hopes Delhi will find a way out of this quagmire.