Background, Major Outstanding Issues and Institutional Mechanisms for Cooperation
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Background
- Longest boundary: 4096 km
- Common cultural ties and history of national movement
- 1971 liberation
- India provided haven to refugees
- Provided aid, training, and shelter for the exiled govt of Bangladesh
- 1972: Treaty of friendship, cooperation, and peace
- Aka Indira-Mujib treaty
- 1975: Assassination of Mujib
- Establishment of military regimes that sought to distance Bangladesh from India
- ULFA started operating its bases from the territory of Bangladesh
- Bangladesh alleged that India was supporting the Shanti Bahini insurgency in the Chittagong Hill tracts
- Some points
- Our geographical proximity makes us natural partners
- Common cultural identity can promote this partnership
Major Outstanding Issues
Table 1
Issue | India՚s Concern | Bangladesh՚s Concern |
---|---|---|
Security | Bangladesh՚s haven to NE insurgent groups, especially ULFA: already taken care by the Sheikh Hasina government | |
Water sharing1/Farakka Barrage, Teesta and Feni | There are 54 rivers in common. Bangladesh says that it does not receive a fair share of the Ganges waters during the drier seasons, and gets flooded during the monsoons when India releases excess waters | |
Enclaves | 51 Indian enclaves in Bangladesh (28 sq km) | 111 Bangladeshi enclaves in India (70 sq km) |
Immigration | There is illegal immigration from Bangladesh to India, especially in Assam and Tripura | |
Maritime Boundary | This is mine | No this is mine |
Fencing of borders | India has fenced borders |
Table 2
Binders | Separators |
---|---|
India՚s role in Bangladesh՚s liberation – Indira Gandhi conferred the highest national award | Security concerns: India shares the longest international border with Bangladesh |
Share common concerns: poverty, development, corruption, and terrorism | The issue of enclaves: |
Shared history and common heritage. Linked by culture: Rabindranath Tagore, Bengali language, outflow-inflow of people | There is no demarcation of maritime boundary. Bangladesh has gone to the Tribunal of the Law of the Seas in this issue |
In 1982, India had gifted the ‘teen bigha’ region to Bangladesh so that it could link its two enclaves | Negative mindset towards India still prevails among certain Bangladeshi circles |
Bilateral trade in 2009 - 10 was 3.507 bn USD. India enjoys trade surplus. |
Institutional Mechanisms for Cooperation
- Joint Rivers Commission
- Joint Economic Commission
- Joint Working group on Security; Joint Boundary Working Group etc.
- India and Bangladesh share 54 common rivers. Ganga Waters Treaty was signed in 1996 for sharing waters of river Ganga during lean season