Teesta issue to dominate water talks

The third secretary-level meeting of Bangladesh-India Joint Committee of Experts (JCE) begins in the city today to take up the issue of sharing of waters of the Teesta and other common rivers.

According to sources in the Water Resources Ministry, the Teesta issue will top the agenda of the meeting and sharing of waters of six other common rivers - Monu, Khowai, Gumti, Muhuri, Dharla and Dudkumar - will also come up at the two-day talks.

The 10-member Bangladesh side of the JCE will be led by Water Resources Secretary Dr A T M Shamsul Huda and his Indian counterpart Zafrul Hasan will lead his country's 10-member delegation at the talks to be held at a city hotel.

The JCE, formed following the signing of Indo-Bangladesh water accord on December 12, 1996, was mandated to look into the problems of water sharing and work out the principles for this.

The outcome of the JCE meeting would be placed before the next meeting of the Joint Rivers Commission (JRC), which is likely to be held in Dhaka within four months.

Officials pointed out that India has built a 921.53 metre barrage on the Teesta at Gajaldoba under Jalpaiguri district in West Bengal for diverting about 1,500 cusec of water to the Mahananda river every day.

Bangladesh also constructed a 615 metre barrage over the Teesta for flood control and irrigation of 5,40,000 hectares of land under 35 thanas in Ranjpur, Dinajpur and Bogra districts.

But the barrage has become almost inoperative due to inadequate flow of water in the Teesta and ecology of the northern region of Bangladesh has been affected severely due to withdrawal of waters by India.

Sources concerned said that the Bangladesh side would demand equal share of the Teesta waters.

When contacted last night, a member of the Bangladesh delegation, requesting anonymity, said, " Sharing of the Teesta waters would be the prime issue on the agenda."

Asked about six other rivers, he said data on those rivers might be exchanged at the meeting.