Bangladesh and Bhutan have agreed to start a direct train service between the two countries in a bilateral meeting on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and visiting Bhutanese Prime Minister Lotay Tshering led the respective sides in the meeting.
Briefing the media on the meeting, Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina may request Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to get India’s consent to this plan as the train route runs through Indian territory from Bangladesh’s Chilahati station.
The meeting also decided to expedite the process of finalising the Standard Operating Procedure (SoP) for using waterways and transit protocol on a priority basis, the minister said.
In the meeting, Bangladesh agreed to supply internet bandwidth to Bhutan at a low cost and let Bhutan use the second submarine cable, the foreign minister said.
Bhutan also proposed to start air cargo flights between Syedpur in Bangladesh and its southern town Gelefu.
Bangladesh responded positively to this proposal, Dr Momen said, adding that the meeting also discussed power cooperation so that Bhutan can supply hydroelectricity to Bangladesh.
He also said that celebrating the Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh’s independence and Bangabandhu’s birth centenary will be the main focus of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bangladesh visit.
Other bilateral negotiations will be held on the side-line, he added.
The foreign minister also said any agreement on the water sharing of the six common rivers is unlikely during Modi's visit as the officials are yet to finalise the modalities.
He further informed India gave consent to Bangladesh for the withdrawal of water from the Kushiyara river near Jokiganj point.
‘It will help Bangladesh to irrigate at least 5000 acres of land” he said.
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