Cabinet okays amended trade accord with India

The cabinet approved on Monday the draft of the amended bilateral trade agreement with India, incorporating a provision of doing business with third countries by using waterways, roadways and railways of each of the countries for transporting goods.  
Bangladesh and India have a trade agreement since 1972. As part of continuation of the agreement, the trade deal, renewed in 2009, expired on March 31, 2015.
As per the new agreement, both Bangladesh and India could use each other's waterways, roadways and railways for doing business with third country.
Under the latest agreement, if Bangladesh decides to do business with Nepal and Bhutan, then it could use Indian waterways, roads and railways, cabinet secretary Muhammad Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told journalists after the regular weekly cabinet meeting.
He said the trade agreement between India and Bangladesh will be for five years instead of the previous three years. It will be renewed automatically after every five years, he added.
The renewal of the agreement will be effective from April 01, 2015. The agreement is likely to be signed when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits Bangladesh.
Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina presided over the meeting at the Cabinet Division of the Bangladesh Secretariat.  
Meanwhile, the PM directed the district officials to gear up execution of development programmes of the government for alleviating poverty, containing terrorism and militancy and turning the country into a middle-income one by 2021.
She also asked through a video conference the District Development Committees of Patuakhali and Netrakona districts and officials of the Barisal Divisional Commissioner's office to gear up the government development activities.
She directed the district officials to find out first the homeless people in their areas and go for 'Ashrayan' project to build homes for them, apart from giving allotment of the Khas land.
The District Development Committees of Shariatpur and Narayanganj districts and officials of the Dhaka Divisional Commissioner's office also observed the video conference online.
 "None will remain without a home during the regime of the Awami League as it's his/her basic right," she said adding people who lost their homes because of river erosion or natural calamities should be provided with houses.
Sheikh Hasina asked the officials to find out ways of engaging homeless people in agriculture-based jobs in the area.
The PM also asked the district officials about the kind of additional social safety net (SSN) programme the government can take to support the poor to alleviate poverty speedily.
She urged all to work sincerely for the development of the country. She said not a single inch of land or water body should remain without utilisation.
Pointing out the last three-months' political turmoil caused by BNP-Jamaat hartal and blockade programmes, the Prime Minister said that the country has passed a very bad time.
She thanked law enforcing agencies and administrative officials for their all out cooperation to tackle the situation.
The Council of Ministers also gave approval to the National Social Security Strategy of Bangladesh and The Ports (Amendment) Act, 2015.  
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