{"id":62322,"date":"2025-12-22T18:27:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-22T12:57:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=62322"},"modified":"2025-12-22T18:34:46","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T13:04:46","slug":"india-bangladesh-relations-mea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/22-12-2025\/india-bangladesh-relations-mea","title":{"rendered":"Future of India-Bangladesh Relationship: Parliamentary Committee on MEA"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/International Relation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>According to a recent report by the <strong>Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs<\/strong>, India is facing its <strong>most formidable strategic challenge<\/strong> in Bangladesh <strong>since the 1971 Liberation War.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Key Highlights of Report&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Strategic Challenge Post-2024 Regime Change:<\/strong> India faces its \u2018greatest strategic challenge\u2019 in Bangladesh since the 1971 Liberation War.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/editorial-analysis\/09-08-2024\/change-in-bangladesh-the-challenges-for-india\"><strong>ousting of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina<\/strong><\/a> in 2024 disrupted a decade-long strategic alignment between the two nations.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The issue gained further complexity after <strong>Hasina was sentenced to death <\/strong>in November, 2025, with Bangladesh\u2019s interim authorities accusing her and her associates of <strong>inciting unrest<\/strong> in parts of the country.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Rising Influence of External Powers:<\/strong> The report warns of<strong> increasing Chinese and Turkish influence<\/strong> in Bangladesh, particularly in infrastructure and defense sectors, which could undermine India\u2019s traditional strategic foothold.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Emergence of a New Political Order in Dhaka: <\/strong>The <strong>interim government<\/strong> has <strong>banned all Awami League political activities<\/strong>, and the party is <strong>barred from contesting<\/strong> the <strong>February 2026 elections<\/strong>.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <strong>National Citizen Party (NCP)<\/strong> has emerged, led by <strong>student activists<\/strong> who spearheaded the movement against Hasina. It has opened avenues for <strong>greater Chinese and Pakistani influence<\/strong> in Bangladesh\u2019s political and economic affairs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Diminishing Strategic Space for India:<\/strong> The new regime in Bangladesh has adopted a <strong>more nationalistic and less India-friendly stance<\/strong>, leading to a visible cooling of bilateral ties.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Anti-India sentiments<\/strong> have gained traction, with public protests targeting Indian diplomatic missions, including a significant demonstration at the Indian High Commission in Dhaka in December 2025.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Connectivity and Economic Cooperation at Risk:<\/strong> India, in 2024, emphasized the importance of multi-modal connectivity, energy cooperation, and trade integration as pillars of the relationship.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Projects like the <strong>India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline<\/strong> and <strong>cross-border rail links<\/strong> were seen as symbols of deepening ties, now <strong>potentially at risk due to political shifts.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Regional and Security Implications:<\/strong> Bangladesh remains vital to <strong>India\u2019s \u2018Neighbourhood First\u2019 and \u2018Act East\u2019 policies<\/strong>, as well as its <strong>Indo-Pacific vision<\/strong>.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <strong>4,096-km shared border<\/strong> makes cooperation on border management, counterterrorism, and migration critical to regional stability.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ganga Water Treaty and Bilateral Engagement: <\/strong>The panel discussed the <strong>Ganga Water Treaty<\/strong>, which is <strong>due for renewal in December 2026<\/strong>.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>No formal discussions<\/strong> have been initiated with Bangladesh, while India has begun consultations with state governments.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The committee has <strong>recommended early bilateral engagement<\/strong> to prevent any <strong>post-2026 vacuum<\/strong> in water-sharing arrangements, emphasizing that maintaining open communication channels is vital for long-term stability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background has-fixed-layout\" style=\"background-color:#ebecf0\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>India\u2013Bangladesh Relationship: An Overview<\/strong><br><br>&#8211; <strong>Historical Context: <\/strong>India was the <strong>first country to recognize Bangladesh<\/strong> after its independence in 1971.<br>a. The <strong>Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Peace (1972)<\/strong> and further evolution into a <strong>comprehensive partnership<\/strong> encompassing political, security, economic, and cultural dimensions.<br>&#8211; <strong>Defence &amp; Security Cooperation: <\/strong>Robust military exchanges between armed forces of both nations, like<strong> Sampriti &amp; Bongo Sagar joint exercises.<\/strong><br>a. <strong>Muktijoddha (freedom fighters) programmes<\/strong> renewed: scholarships and medical schemes extended through 2027.<br>b. Cooperation on <strong>police, anti-corruption, drug trafficking, fake currency, and human trafficking<\/strong> issues.<br>c. Regular <strong>DG-level talks<\/strong> between Border Guards and anti-narcotics agencies.<br><br>&#8211; <strong>Connectivity Cooperation:<\/strong><br>a. <strong>Railway Connectivity: <\/strong>Rehabilitation of <strong>6 pre-1965 cross-border rail links<\/strong>, and three passenger trains <strong>Maitri, Bandhan, and Mitali Express <\/strong>in operation.<br>b. <strong>Road and Inland Waterways: Five bus routes<\/strong> connect Indian cities (Kolkata, Agartala, Guwahati) to Dhaka and Khulna.<br>c. <strong>Port Connectivity: Chittagong and Mongla Ports<\/strong> opened for Indian transit use (2023), reducing logistics costs and transport time.<br>1. Expansion of the <strong>BBIN Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA)<\/strong>, improving logistics in Northeast India and Bangladesh.<br>2. Plans for a <strong>Dhaka\u2013Kolkata express cargo corridor<\/strong>.<br><br>&#8211; <strong>Economic and Commercial Relations: Bangladesh is India\u2019s largest trade partner in South Asia<\/strong>; India is Bangladesh\u2019s 2nd largest in Asia.<br>a. FY 2023\u201324 trade volume: <strong>USD 14.01 billion<\/strong>, with <strong>Bangladesh exports to India at USD 1.97 billion<\/strong>.<br>&#8211; <strong>Power and Energy Cooperation: <\/strong>Bangladesh imports <strong>1,160 MW of electricity<\/strong> from India.<br>a. <strong>Joint Working Group\/Steering Committee on Power<\/strong> manages cross-border electricity trade.<br>b. <strong>Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant<\/strong> operational.<br>c. <strong>India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline (2023)<\/strong> transports high-speed diesel.<br>d. Indian firms <strong>ONGC Videsh Ltd, Oil India, and IOCL<\/strong> are involved in energy collaboration.<br>&#8211; <strong>Development Partnership: <\/strong>Bangladesh is <strong>India\u2019s largest development partner<\/strong> with <strong>USD 8 billion in Lines of Credit<\/strong>.<br>a. Projects include <strong>roads, railways, ports, and shipping infrastructure<\/strong>.<br>b. 77 completed and 16 ongoing<strong> High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDPs)<\/strong> worth <strong>USD 50 million<\/strong>.<br>c. Human resource development via <strong>ITEC training<\/strong>, scholarships, and capacity-building programs for civil servants, police, and professionals.<br>d. <strong>1,000 \u2018Suborno Jayanti Scholarships\u2019<\/strong> and dedicated portal for Bangladeshi students to study in India.<br><br><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"566\" height=\"309\" src=\"blob:https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/99f7c9fe-f554-45c1-8e58-a5cf4f2b69aa\"><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background has-fixed-layout\" style=\"background-color:#fff2cc\"><tbody><tr><td><em>Refer for more details<\/em><strong><em> <\/em><\/strong><em>on<\/em><strong><em> India-Bangladesh Relation:<\/em><\/strong><br><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/05-04-2025\/india-bangladesh-relations-developments-issues\"><em>https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/05-04-2025\/india-bangladesh-relations-developments-issues<\/em><\/a><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/india-faces-its-greatest-strategic-challenge-in-bangladesh-since-1971-parliamentary-committee-on-external-affairs\/article70412853.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source: TH<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Context<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">According to a recent report by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, India is facing its most formidable strategic challenge in Bangladesh since the 1971 Liberation War.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong>Key Highlights of Report\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Strategic Challenge Post-2024 Regime Change: India faces its \u2018greatest strategic challenge\u2019 in Bangladesh since the 1971 Liberation War.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The ousting of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2024 disrupted a decade-long strategic alignment between the two nations.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/22-12-2025\/india-bangladesh-relations-mea\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-62322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62322"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62322\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":62330,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62322\/revisions\/62330"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}