He will witness the signing of one-billion dollar credit facility by Indian private EXIM bank to Bangladesh for infrastructure projects, mainly aimed at facilitating transit and transhipment of Indian goods to north-eastern states. He will be given a special welcome by the Awami League-led grand alliance government amid tight security. This is his second visit to Dhaka during this government. Earlier, in January 2009, the veteran Congress leader visited Bangladesh for conveying New Delhi's good wishes for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government.
Just after his arrival to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in the afternoon, the Indian finance minister will directly go to the state guest house Jamuna where he will witness the signing of the US$ 1 billion Line of Credit agreement by the CMD, EXIM Bank of India and the Secretary, Economic Relations Division (ERD) of Bangladesh.
Mukherjee will also meet the foreign and the finance ministers at state guest house Jamuna and meet the media persons.
He will have a one-on-one meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina before going back home tonight.
Diplomatic sources said, he will convey the message of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that India is serious to beef up cooperation with Bangladesh.
Experts of both the countries observed that India is yet to reciprocate to implement the joint communiqué and the decisions reached during the Hasina-Manmohan talks in January. There were media criticisms also for India's go-slow policy saying that it frustrates its partners in Dhaka and generates political space for the opponents of Indo-Bangladesh friendship.
Dhaka moved quickly to address Delhi's concerns on cross-border terrorism and connectivity to the north-east.
On the other hand, Dhaka is concerned over Delhi's inability to solve even smaller issues like the Tin Bigha corridor. In the joint communiqué, India had agreed to allow Dhaka to supply electricity to the enclave and promised to construct a flyover across the corridor for exclusive Indian use.
Again, there was no progress on boundary negotiations, Teesta water sharing, lifting of trade barriers that block entry of Bangladeshi goods into India.
Observers said, years after years, Bangladesh is waiting to deal boundary issue as a 'package' agreement including demarcation of the 6.1 km disputed border, enclaves and adverse possession in an all-in-one deal.
Bangladesh submitted a draft agreement on Teesta months ago and has been waiting for another meeting of the joint rivers commission for finalization.
Sources said, the Indian finance minister will announce a gift of three lakh tonnes of rice. He may inform the government that India is ready to schedule a meeting of the joint boundary working group after the Eid.
The Indian Prime Minister had announced a US$ 1 billion credit to Bangladesh for a range of projects, including railway infrastructure, supply of BG locomotives and passenger coaches, procurement of buses, and dredging projects during the visit of Sheikh Hasina to India in January 10-13.
After consultation with India, Bangladesh has finalised 14 development projects, particularly for infrastructure building, including those that will enhance the transit and transhipment of Indian goods to its main land to north-eastern states.
By deputing Indian Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee for a day's visit to Dhaka, India has signaled great importance it attaches to bilateral friendship with Bangladesh as its closest neighbour. New Delhi hopes that the visit would help cement the ties between the two countries in multifarious fields of joint cooperation.
India's largest circulated daily - The Times of India felt: "Mukherjee's personal appearance is deemed crucial because PM Manmohan Singh wants to send an important message to its eastern neighbour, that Bangladesh is very high on the priority list."
The message signaled India's response to Bangladesh's reported unhappiness about the tardy Indian response to bilateral matters after the visit of Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina.
The paper hypothesized that Mukherjee might "announce a gift of 3 lakh tonnes of rice", but much more important, apprise Dhaka that India was to schedule a meeting of the joint boundary working group after the Eid festival.
Quoting a central official, the paper reported that the boundary negotiations would involve a 'package' agreement including demarcation of the 6.1 km disputed border, enclaves and adverse possession in an all-in-one deal. "That means progress is necessarily slow," said an official.
The paper claimed that India might offer a 'draft memorandum of understanding' and 'a set of principles' on matters relating to the joint rivers commission about exchanged ideas on Teesta water sharing with Bangladesh. Quoting sources, the paper said: "Within both documents lay the contours of an agreement". It also noted that both the countries travelled a long distance to agree conducting "dredging on the Ichchamati river as well as build embankments".
The TOI reports, both "Indian officials are most bullish about the prospect of cooperation in the power sector". It felt that Mukherjee would try to convince the leadership (Bangladesh) that 1,320 mw Chittagong thermal power project, to be built by NTPC, a government undertaking, "would be on the lines of the one executed in Sri Lanka recently". Mukherjee was likely to renew a further export of eight million pieces of garments from Bangladesh to India following the completion of earlier identical quota of duty-free garments from Dhaka.
An Indian senior official told the TOI that "We have to hold Bangladesh's hand, and do it publicly," said a senior official. With Mukherjee's visit, India is hoping Bangladesh will understand that India wants to do just that. The paper concluded with observation that "India has only now made the mental changeover to a relationship that is not based on reciprocity, a governing principle for India's neighbourhood diplomacy for all these years."
According to official sources, it was learnt that Mukherjee would leave for Dhaka by a special flight tomorrow around one in the afternoon. He would head an official delegation of the finance ministry and a four-member media team.
According to Mukherjee's itinerary, it was learnt that he would return back New Delhi the same evening to attend the 125th founding anniversary of India's ruling Congress party the very next day.
published on 7 august 2010, the independent
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