Mamata visit: People-to-people contacts to deepen bilateral relations

There have been ups and downs in the relations between Bangladesh and India. It is noticeable that under the Narendra Modi regime, along with other neighbours of India, Bangladesh is getting prioritised in the foreign policy of India. In fact, during the oath-taking ceremony of Modi, invitation to all the SAARC leaders demonstrated positive spirit from India to deepen its relations with the neighbours.
With regard to Indo-Bangladesh relations under the present Modi and Hasina regimes, it is pertinent to note that the visit of Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj within a month of the Modi government's assuming charge reflected the significance that India attaches to deepening of Delhi's relations with Dhaka.
In addition, during his maiden meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on September 27 last year on the sidelines of the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Narendra Modi had expressed his keen interest to resolve the pending issues including Teesta water-sharing agreement and land boundary agreement.
Pashchimbanga chief minister Mamata Banerjee will come to Dhaka today (Thursday) on a three-day official visit. Earlier in September 2011, she had cancelled at the last minute her trip to Dhaka accompanying the then Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. This ultimately resulted in a stalemate over the Teesta water sharing deal. So, the ensuing visit of Mamata will certainly provide an opportunity to discuss the bilateral issues including the Teesta water-sharing agreement.
In recent times, there were a number of developments to deepen the Indo-Bangladesh relations. Introduction of the third border haat at the convergence of Feni and Tripura to boost local trade and contacts, re-opening of historic bus service between Guwahati and Dhaka and the proposed SAARC Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA) mark a notable headway. In addition, the Indo-Bangladesh 'cricket diplomacy' is also noticeable on the occasion of the on-going World Cricket Cup through the phone call of Modi to Hasina. Besides, according to the Bangladesh Shangbad Shangshtha (BSS), Modi told Hasina that he would visit Dhaka soon 'with good news'. This certainly testifies to the warm relations that India and Bangladesh are enjoying under the leadership of Modi and Hasina.
In fact, Bangladesh holds a key strategic position vis-à-vis India's connectivity to South East Asia and China. In recent times, the increased Chinese engagement in South Asian countries, including Bangladesh, also drew Indian attention. Considering its geo-strategic and economic interests, Bangladesh matters much to both India and China.
To uplift Indo-Bangladesh relations, certain concrete measures can be expected from both the sides. First, there is an untapped market for Bangladeshi products in India which needs to be explored. Since 1971 until 2004, India was the largest trading partner of Bangladesh. But China's trade with Bangladesh increased manifold in recent years and even surpassed that of India from 2004 onward. China is providing duty-free access to more than 4,700 Bangladesh-made items. Hence, India also needs to ease market access for Bangladeshi products.
Second, it is time to resolve the pending issues including the Teesta water sharing and the land boundary dispute to foster cooperation.
Third, there is no alternative to promotion of people-to-people contacts to deepen bilateral relations. In fact, promoting people-to-people contact is quite imperative to galvanise the Indo-Bangladesh relations. In this connection, introducing border haats in the Indo-Bangladesh border is expected to promote people-to-people contact in the days ahead. In addition, recent relaxation of rules in getting Indian visas is a positive move from the Indian side which is expected to accelerate people-to-people contact.
Finally, India cannot rise as an economic superpower until its poor neighbours are developed. And in this age of globalisation, it is time to come out from the 19th century concept of sovereignty to 21st century notion of inter-dependence. Hence, for its own interests, India needs to engage its neighbours and deepen its relations based on mutual respect and reciprocity. Consequently, both Bangladesh and India need to seek a new future for the greater benefit of their people and the region.
The writer is Lecturer, Department of International Relations, University of Rajshahi.  [email protected]