Last few years a golden chapter in Indo-Bangla ties, says Modi

Santiniketan: The last few years have been a golden chapter in India-Bangladesh relationship when complicated issues of land and coastal boundaries were resolved, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said here on Friday.

Echoing his views, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who inaugurated the newly-constructed Bangladesh Bhavan here along with Modi, voiced hope that the remaining issues will also be resolved in a "friendly atmosphere".

The PM greeted Hasina in Bengali and said his government would take initiatives to ensure that the youth of both the countries get to know about the cultural contributions made by eminent personalities from the two nations.

After the inauguration of the Bangladesh Bhavan, he said, "A golden chapter is being written in the relationship of India and Bangladesh. Complicated issues related to the land boundary and coastal boundary, which seemed impossible to solve at one point in time, were finally resolved."

Modi said India has agreed to extend a line of credit worth eight billion dollars for the development of Bangladesh.

Modi said the two neighbours are moving forward rapidly in the area of connectivity - be it roads, railways, international waterways or coastal shipping.

Acknowledging India's help to Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina said, "We are getting all cooperation from India. Our only enemy is poverty, and we want to remove it. We are working towards that goal and India is helping us in our efforts".

"Together we have resolved many bilateral issues in an amicable way for the benefit of both the countries. Although there are issues that still need to be taken care of, I do not wish to mention them at this programme," she said.

Hasina said, "There may still be some problems, and we hope to resolve those issues in a friendly atmosphere."

The two countries had in the past settled border disputes by signing the Land Boundary Agreement for the exchange of enclaves, she said.

Expressing gratitude to India for "standing beside Bangladesh in times of crisis", Hasina, who is Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's daughter, said, "We will never forget how India stood beside us during the 1971 Liberation war." See P6