BD to seek transit to enhance trade with Nepal, Bhutan

Bangladesh will seek transit facilities from India to enhance connectivity, trade and commerce with Nepal and Bhutan at the Prime Minister- level meeting today (Saturday) at PMO.
Bangladesh will also urge the Indian authority to finalise its joining the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway Project to increase trade with its neighbours, earn a huge amount of revenue, and enhance connectivity, according to the Foreign Ministry.
The Indian premier arrived in Dhaka on Friday and joined the celebrations of golden jubilee of Bangladesh's independence, the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and 50 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
 "Regional connectivity was one of the key issues discussed at the recent bilateral summit. The two leaders reviewed a number of connectivity projects, including a trial run of trans-shipment of Indian goods from Kolkata to Agartala via Chattogram and operationalization of the Sonamura-Daudkandi Protocol route under the Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade (PIWTT)," according to the Foreign Ministry sources.
India wants to create a platform. "If we can get connectivity right between India and Bangladesh, I can tell you the entire geo-economy of the region will change. The Bay of Bengal will look very different," Momen earlier told reporters.
India wants the inclusion of Japan in the Bay of Bengal  project, hinted the issue, Indian Foreign Minister Jaishankar said Japan, which is a very good friend of Bangladesh and India, in terms of connectivity. Japan is already involved in a number of major connectivity projects in the Bay of Bengal under the Bengal Industrial Growth Belt, he added.
The two leaders also decided to expedite the operationalization of transporting Indian goods through Chattogram and Mongla ports in Bangladesh. They will also discuss the connectivity between the border districts of Hilli in the Indian state of West Bengal and Mahendraganj in the Indian state of Meghalaya through transit over Bangladeshi      territory.
 "Still negotiations is going on, a number of MoUs have been finalised on major issues�.I can't tell the exact number at this moment," Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen told the media on Thursday, adding that the two countries are looking at a comprehensive trade related agreement and the two countries will continue discussions on a comprehensive economic partnership.
As the two neighbouring countries celebrate their 50- year of diplomatic relations, Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said, "Connectivity is productivity."
"Bangladesh provides transit facilities to India on three modes of transport: Inland water, rail, and coastal shipping. BBIN Motor Vehicle Agreement will add a fourth mode to the existing facilities. Now we need to consider how it can reap fruits from both its existing arrangements and the new developments," a senior official of the Foreign Ministry told this correspondent.