‘Working on Teesta, land boundary pact’

Shubhajit Roy : New Delhi, Tue May 08 2012, 00:41 hrs

India on Monday assured Bangladesh that the government was working “very hard” to develop “political consensus” on two bilateral agreements — the Teesta water-sharing treaty and the land boundary pact — but did not commit to a time-frame, sources told The Indian Express on Monday.

A worried Bangladesh government has been pressing for an early signing of the Teesta water-sharing pact, since it is a very emotive issue in the country. And the Sheikh Hasina government has also requested New Delhi to ratify the land boundary agreement in Parliament that was signed in September 2011.

But with both pacts stuck Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dipu Moni raised the issue with External Affairs Minister S M Krishna at the first Joint Consultative Commission meeting in the Capital on Monday.

As Moni raised the “request about the early conclusion and the ratification of Land Boundary Agreement and Teesta river treaty”, Krishna said internal consultations were on among stakeholders on Teesta water treaty and efforts were afoot to evolve a “political consensus”.

At the joint press conference with Moni, Krishna said: “I have assured Dr Dipu Moni that India remains committed to an early solution on the issue of sharing Teesta waters.”

On the ratification of the land boundary agreement, Krishna’s assurance echoed what Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee told Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina on Sunday, that getting the land boundary agreement was a “cumbersome process”.