Reciprocity in India-Bangladesh relations

People of Bangladesh and India should both want that the relationship of the two countries should only go on improving from strength to strength to meet the criterion of good neighbourliness. More importantly, there is a great deal of expectation and rightly so in both countries that they need to interact much more in economic matters for mutual benefit. Such good neighbourliness and greater economic interactions can bloom if both sides are really motivated by a genuine spirit of give-and-take or one side responding in equal measure to a good gesture from the other. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited India last year and returned after signing a historic joint communiqué. The visit resulted in a number of agreements with India. In fact, it led to Bangladesh agreeing to most Indian requests including the one for the transshipment of Indian goods through Bangladesh territories. The Indian Finance Minister subsequently, though belatedly, came to Dhaka and signed a loan agreement. The loaned amount is in the process of being spent to upgrade transportation related infrastructures in Bangladesh and for other areas that have been earmarked for the use of the fund. Bangladesh has been also prompt in pushing back the 'terrorists' or the likes of them of Indian origin who were arrested here. Thus, Bangladesh can be considered as being proactive in meeting the objectives which were set for it during the PM's India visit. New Delhi does not seem to be serious enough to deal with matters relating to Bangladesh with any serious attention. No worthwhile effort is seen on the side of India to take appropriate steps to help resolve a number of long-standing issues with India. The foreign ministry of India seems to be overzealous with matters concerning Pakistan and other countries. Bangladesh is apparently of 'tertiary' importance to the concerned policy-making authorities in New Delhi. If that is India's real state of mind, there is every reason for Bangladesh to doubt the sincerity of India in promoting goodwill and fostering cooperation in a win-win situation for both the countries. Indeed, it is regrettable to find that when anything of substance about Bangladesh comes for consideration, India prefers a dilly-dally approach. 'Take-it-all' in exchange of 'give-nothing' does in no way create the ground for taking Indo-Bangladesh bilateral relationship to a meaningful new height. It rather creates suspicion and doubts in the minds of Bangladesh and tends to lend evidence to the critics of the deal that Bangladesh signed last year with India. Amin Ahmed Chowdhury Iqbal Road, Asad Gate Dhaka