India-Bangladesh friendship will touch new heights in the next 25 years of Amrit Kaal: PM Modi

Delhi, Sep 06: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said that his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina is visiting India during the 'Amrit Mahotsav' of India's freedom and the friendship between the two nations would touch new heights in the next 25 years of Amrit Kaal. PM Modi and Bangladesh PM Hasina, who is on a four-day visit to India, held a joint press conference on Tuesday in Delhi, on the sidelines of the bilateral talks.

During the joint press conference, PM Modi said, "Last year we celebrated together the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh's independence, the golden jubilee of our diplomatic relations, and the birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The same year, on December 6, we also celebrated the first 'Friendship Day' together all over the world."

PM Modi congratulated Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her visit to the country and said, "Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is visiting India during the Amrit Mahotsav of our freedom. And I am sure that the India-Bangladesh friendship will touch new heights in the next 25 years of Amrit Kaal."

While talking about bilateral trade and cooperation, PM Modi said that today, Bangladesh is India's largest development partner and trade partner in the region. The two countries look forward to further strengthening their ties.

"We have decided to extend cooperation in IT, space and nuclear energy, which are of interest to our younger generations. Talks are also underway between India and Bangladesh on power transmission lines," he said.

He further said that 54 rivers flow through the India-Bangladesh border and are linked to the livelihood of people in both the countries, the two leaders have reached an agreement on the water sharing from the Kushiyara river.

"Today we have signed an important agreement on water sharing from the Kushiyara River. This will benefit Southern Assam in India and Sylhet region in Bangladesh," he said.

PM Modi further said, "We have extended our cooperation on flood mitigation. We have been sharing real-time data regarding floods with Bangladesh & have also discussed terrorism. It's imperative, that we together face the forces that are adversarial to us."

Today, India and Bangladesh signed seven memorandums of understanding (MoUs) in the presence of PM Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina in Delhi.

(With inputs from ANI)