Mutual trust, consensus will take Indo-Bangla ties to new high

Past high commissioners of Bangladesh and India say mutual trust and consensus will take the relations to a new high.
They made the comment during the 'Lesson from the past' session on the first day of the first-ever India-Bangladesh High Commissioners’ summit that started Friday.
Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali inaugurated the summit at Dhaka University's Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban.
Past and present high commissioners of India and Bangladesh joined the meet to share experiences and offer insights into India-Bangladesh relations. Friday's session was also attended by teachers and students, according to a news agency.
IS Chadha, who served as the Indian High Commissioner to Dhaka from Oct 1985 to Feb 1989, said mutual trust and national consensus must be prioritised to strengthen the relations.
Muchkund Dubey, who was in Dhaka from Oct 1979 to Oct 1982 during the regime of Ziaur Rahman, thinks the current state of bilateral relations is 'better than the past'.
Both countries were working together based on confidence and understanding, he said, Former Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Faruk Ahmed Choudhury said inclusion of stakeholders was necessary when policies were thought out to resolve unsettled issues and strengthen ties.
CM Shafi Sami, former Bangladesh envoy to India, said Bangladesh-India relations were important for the whole region as well.
However, former Bangladesh envoy Farooq Sobhan thought the neighbours were yet to have the expected level of trust between them, which had a negative impact on the bilateral relations.
Former envoy Harun ur Rashid who served in Kolkata said maintaining a 'parallel and balanced' relation should be of greater importance.
He said, "Border killings must be lowered to zero. And land boundary and Teesta water-sharing agreements must be settled urgently."
The former high commissioners felt the security issue was vital in strengthening the relations.