Transit deal is the restoration of old link
The recently signed transit agreement between Bangladesh and India is the restoration of old link between the countries, said diplomats and academics yesterday.
"It is not a transit facility, rather we may call it a restoration of snapped relations between the two countries as there was a long communication link in this sub-continent," said former diplomat Syed Moazzam Ali.
He was speaking at a roundtable titled "Pranab Mukherjee's visit: Impact on India-Bangladesh relations" organised by the daily Bhorer Kagoj.
Shyamal Dutta, editor of the daily, said the main objective of the roundtable was to seek clarifications from the government on the circumstances and relevant details of the recent $1 billion loan agreement signed with India.
Foreign Minister Dipu Moni said the deal constituted a restoration of the missing links prevailing in the past.
"We should look at the connectivity issue from a broader historical perspective as it will create better communication linkages among the South Asian nations," said the foreign minister.
Those who are opposing the deal are doing it just for the sake of opposing the government deliberately, she added.
"Mughal emperor Sher Shah was the pioneer of establishing connectivity across this sub-continent. So, whatever we attempt now may be described as the restoration of the age-old connectivity," said Syed Anwar Hossain, professor of history at Dhaka University.
Imtiaz Ahmed, professor of international relations at the university, said: "We should not compare the Indo-Bangla relations with any other bilateral links. We should consider four issues: roots of our civilisations; the distinct and singular voice and identity of the Bangalees; general sub-continental issues; and resurrection of the countries' economies."
He said the Bangladeshi businesspeople should act fast and more eagerly to explore the untapped markets of the northeast Indian states, as Bangladeshi goods are more competitive.
"We should also consider the costs of non-cooperation, as China now emerges as the largest trading partner among the South Asian countries due to this non-cooperation."
Ahmed said, in spite of confrontational politics among India and Pakistan, China and Taiwan, and China and India, their economic relations seem to be independent.
India and Bangladesh recently signed a $1 billion line of credit agreement.
The money will be used for implementation of 14 projects, mostly related to the development of railway infrastructure in Bangladesh, upgrading of Ashuganj river port, construction of roads and bridges to facilitate transit/transhipment of Indian goods to its northeastern region through Bangladesh, purchase of double-decker buses from India and setting up of power gridline between India and Bangladesh.
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