Kolkata, Feb 19 (IANS) Hours before her maiden visit to Bangladesh as the West Bengal chief minister, Mamata Banerjee Thursday remained mum on the contentious Teesta water sharing deal but exuded confidence of a breakthrough in the land boundary agreement.
"I won't say anything on Teesta. If you have questions on other issues, you can ask," Banerjee told media persons at the state assembly premises.
Banerjee said she has assured External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj that West Bengal and Bangladesh - who share the common language Bengali - were continuing to build bridges.
"We have already informed the central government about our willingness for the settlement of the land border agreement. We have told the centre about preparing a rehabilitation package for the enclave dwellers. We are very positive about the issue being settled this time," Banerjee said.
Once the land boundary agreement (LBA) is passed, India will cede 111 enclaves measuring 17,160 acres to Bangladesh and receive 51 enclaves covering 7,110 acres. More than 51,000 people reside in these enclaves.
"We need to think and plan about the enclave dwellers. We have sent a proposal of rehabilitation package for the enclave dwellers to the central government," said Banerjee, who had earlier opposed the pact only to make a U-turn after the BJP-led central government expressed its eagerness to ratify the agreement.
"Sushma Swaraj also called me up to offer her best wishes. I assured her we will continue our efforts of building bridges," said Banerjee, who heads the Trinamool Congress.
The Teesta water sharing pact has been put on hold after the Trinamool's strong opposition, over fears that the treaty could spell disaster for northern West Bengal.
In September 2011, Banerjee had embarrassed then prime minister Manmohan Singh by pulling out of the prime minister-led delegation to Bangladesh over the water sharing agreement, forcing India to drop it from the agenda.
During her three-day trip to the neighbouring nation beginning Thursday, the chief minister will meet Bangladesh President Mohammad Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
"Besides having a one-to-one meeting with Hasina, I will also meet the president and their external affairs minister. A business delegation is accompanying us and we will have a business meet there.
"Our Singapore visit was very fruitful which was evident during the Global Business summit here. We hope our Bangladesh visit will also be very fruitful," Banerjee said.
The chief minister, who is undertaking the trip on an invitation by Bangladesh Foreign Minister A.H. Mahmood Ali, will attend the main function at Dhaka's Shaheed Minar on the occasion of Mother Language Day Feb 21, which commemorates the martyrdom of Bangladeshi youths during the Language Movement in 1952.
Banerjee is also scheduled to address a business conclave organised by the India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IBCCI) in association with the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Kolkata.
She would be visiting the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum in Dhanmondi and also be present at a reception hosted in her honour by India's High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pankaj Saran.
State Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim, Tourism Minister and playwright Bratya Basu, actors-turned-MPs Deb and Moonmoon Sen, and business magnates Harsh Neotia and J.P. Choudhury are part of the entourage.
Preparation for an economic attack on Russia: Biden said in NATO summit - take Russia out of G20; It would cut him off from the world's biggest economy
US President Joe Biden addressed the NATO summit in the Belgian capital Brussels on Thursday. Biden said Russia should be pulled out of the G20 group of industrialized and developing countries in
Border Dispute: Won't let an inch of Maharashtra's land go anywhere, CM Shinde said on border dispute with Karnataka
CM Eknath Shinde has given a big statement on the ongoing border dispute between Maharashtra-Karnataka. On Thursday, he said that his government will not let even an inch of Maharashtra's land go to
Shivraj cabinet constituted soon in Madhya Pradesh, 8-10 senior MLAs may take oath of cabinet minister
Bhopal. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is going to form his cabinet soon in Madhya Pradesh amid Corona crisis. Sugabhughat in the capital Bhopal has intensified and cabinet claimants have camped
Cough Syrups Controversy: Show Cause Notice to Maiden Pharmaceuticals, action will be taken after the investigation report
The Drug Controller of the Indian state of Haryana has issued a show cause notice to Maiden Pharmaceuticals for quality test violations at its factory. Officials said last week they were testing
US's clarification on the package of F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan, Jaishankar said - who are you fooling
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has questioned the US sanctioning $450 million (Rs 3,651 crore) to Pakistan for the upgrade of the F-16 Fighter Jet. He said that Americans have no interest in
Coaching institutions are falling apart in the Corona era
Apart from Delhi, he used to go to Lucknow, Allahabad, and Jaipur too. He used to earn around one lakh rupees every month from coaching institutes. Coaching institutes are closed after the lockdown
Cheaper 5G phone will not be available than this, buy from Amazon in launching an offer for less than Rs 10,000.
Amazon Deal On Smartphone: The cheapest and best feature phone supporting 5G network has gone on sale on Amazon from November 15. The price of this phone is Rs 14,999 but you can buy it for Rs 9,999
US Regrets Sureshbhai Patel Issue
New Delhi, Feb 18 (IANS) The US has "respectfully acknowledged" India's concern and protests over Madison police using excessive force on Indian national Sureshbhai Patel Feb 6.Responding to
Shashi Tharoor expressed anger over the increasing pollution in Delhi, said- should this city be the capital of the country.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has posted on Instagram expressing anger over the rising air pollution in Delhi, in which he has shown a list of some countries of the world, in which Delhi is the most
Srinagar-Jammu highway stays closed for third day
Srinagar, March 17 (IANS) The strategic Srinagar-Jammu national highway remained closed for the third consecutive day on Tuesday even though road clearance operations were started after rain and
