Reflections on India-Bangladesh relations

Our relationship with Bangladesh is long-standing and unique.  We are linked by a shared history, a shared geography, in addition to a common language and culture. We both seek, and value, a relationship based on mutual trust and understanding, and mutual respect. There is broad shared empathy between our people, much of which can be traced back to Bangladesh's Liberation War of 1971. Regardless of how it may be characterised, it is a people-centric relationship. People and public-opinion shape our relations more than we realise.

As a neighbour to whom we take a long-term view of our relations, our ties with Bangladesh derive strength from our belief that our peace, security, progress and prosperity are interlinked. And therefore, we strive to create common stakes in our mutual prosperity through a robust framework of multifaceted cooperation. Both of us are important stakeholders in the peace, security and development of Bay of Bengal. We also share a common biosphere and ecological environment, which makes our collaboration vital to address shared challenges such as environmental sustainability and climate change.

Because of its geographical location, emerging capacities, and growing regional and global ambitions, Bangladesh is not just a pillar of our "Neighbourhood First" Policy, but sits at the intersection of most of India's key foreign policy visions - such as the "Act East Policy", the doctrine of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in Region), as well as our Indo-Pacific Vision. 

We believe ours is a relationship of great consequence, not just for the two of us, but also for our region, given our growing capacities and aspirations to get more integrated by leveraging each other's strengths and complementarities. Bangladesh is uniquely poised to advance the integration agenda under the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), being located at the geographical, political and economic centre of gravity of the region and also as the host of BIMSTEC's headquarters.

Many transformative changes that have taken place in our relations and which unlocked the growth potential of the region, are results of mutual sensitivity we have shown to each other's concerns and aspirations. Bangladesh's "zero-tolerance" to terrorism and its determination of not sheltering insurgencies targeting India, proved vital for our cooperation and prosperity. It will remain an important factor in the future development of our two countries, our region and our relationship.

One of our biggest achievements - the resolution of our maritime and land boundaries, has opened up whole host of avenues for our land and maritime connectivity as well as cooperation in blue economy. Our maritime boundary settlement, by referring the matter to the Permanent Court of Arbitration and then following its ruling in letter and spirit, is a fine example of how the principle of democratic and rules based international order that we strongly believe in, has found reflection in our bilateral conduct.

A key manifestation of the transformation of our multifaceted partnership, that has directly benefitted the people of both our countries, is our growing trade and economic engagement, and our connectivity links. 

Today, Bangladesh is our largest trade partner in South Asia and the fifth largest in the world. India under SAFTA has unilaterally given duty-free, quota-free access to Bangladesh for more than a decade now, for all goods, which has enabled greater exports from Bangladesh to India.

We often hear concerns about trade deficit for Bangladesh, but it is important to appreciate that much of India's exports to Bangladesh either constitute critical inputs for a large part of Bangladesh's exports, or are supplies of essential commodities that help Bangladesh deal with inflationary pressures. 

Actually, a less appreciated fact is that India is now among the largest export markets for Bangladesh in the entire Asia, with Bangladeshi exports to India consistently hovering around 2-billion-dollar mark over the last few years. And we do want this number to grow.

We strongly believe that connectivity is a major enabler that help our societies, our businesses and our people to closely connect and benefit from each other. And we have made quite some progress.

With a contiguous geography and a long shared-history, in many ways, we are actually trying to reconnect our two countries. We have restored six of the seven pre-1965 railway links for both passengers and goods. A major part of our bilateral trade and people-to-people movement are channelled through thirty-six functioning Land Customs Stations, five of which have been upgraded to the level of Integrated Check Posts. Just earlier this month, we added new infrastructure at Petrapole Integrated Check Post that will significantly enhance cargo movement and passenger convenience.

Today, Bangladesh RMG exporters are using three large Indian airports - Kolkata, Delhi and Bengaluru - as highly cost-effective transshipment hubs for their exports to third countries, making Bangladeshi products much more competitive in western markets. Our deep-sea ports are ready to offer similar advantages to Bangladeshi exporters.

Our connectivity links are not limited to trade and transport.  We are also building robust energy connectivity.  Some of the examples are - a new cross-border diesel pipeline launched last year bringing high-speed diesel from an Indian refinery to Bangladesh; the cross-border power transmission lines uninterruptedly supplying nearly 1200 MW of power from Indian power grid to Bangladesh; and the first transmission of 40 MW of power from Nepal to Bangladesh through the Indian grid just two days ago. All these are examples of how our energy connectivity and collaboration is augmenting our energy security and contributing to creation of a true regional economy. 

In short, our approach to connectivity is a simple one - it is about transforming our geographical proximity into new economic opportunities that benefit people of both our countries and also the entire region.

Our belief that people are the foundation of our relations was evident when COVID-19 struck us when we opened our arms to help each other. It is also evident in our large visa operations in Bangladesh, where despite current limited operations, we issue more visas to Bangladeshi citizens each day than any other diplomatic mission in Dhaka.

As custodians of our future relationship, youth are an important stakeholder in our partnership. This is evident in nearly a thousand scholarships every year that India offers to Bangladeshi youths and young professionals, including from civil society and media, belonging to all regions and affiliations. Just two months ago, more than five hundred highly talented Bangladeshi students left for higher education in some of India's premier educational institutions on our ICCR scholarship. Our Bangladesh Youth Delegation, or the BYD programme as it is popularly known, is another robust platform for our youth outreach that today has a proud, nationwide alumni network.

To sum it all up, India will continue to seek a stable, positive and constructive relationship with Bangladesh in which our people are the main stakeholders. We have and will continue to support a democratic, stable, peaceful and progressive Bangladesh.  We remain committed to working together with the government and people of Bangladesh to fulfil the shared aspirations of our peoples for peace, security and development. And we strongly believe that our partnership must benefit the common people on both sides.

Both India and Bangladesh are today far more developed and capable than they were ever before.  And we also depend on each other far more today than we ever used to, as our economies and development paths continue to intertwine. We must keep reinforcing our interdependencies.

As two aspirational societies with growing economic capabilities, there is so much we can offer to each other, and create new opportunities if we continue to engage closely, pragmatically and constructively with each other. A strong and prosperous Bangladesh, we believe, is vital for India just as a strong and prosperous India is for Bangladesh.

And, a final reflection.  The fact that our trade and economic ties, our transport and energy connectivity, and our people-to-people engagements have sustained a positive momentum, despite the turbulent changes in Bangladesh, shows that our relations are truly multifaceted, and cannot be reduced to a single agenda or issue. There are irritants but they have not restricted the overall forward movement in our relations. As two nations whose progress and prosperity are as inter-linked as our geographies and historical roots, the reality of our interdependence and mutual benefit will keep reasserting itself again and again, regardless of changes in the political wind.

We must shape the course and narrative of this very important relationship, with objectivity and with empathy.

The writer is High Commissioner of India in Dhaka, Bangladesh.