South Asia
Teesta Water Agreement India assures Bangladesh about Teesta agreement
Own Correspondent, New Delhi, August 26: The Teesta water sharing agreement came up for discussion in the 38th ministerial meeting of the Bangladesh-India Joint River Commission (JRC). India has been requested by Bangladesh to complete the agreement quickly. India has also assured all-out efforts to complete the agreement.
The JRC meeting was held in New Delhi on Thursday (August 25).
The Bangladesh delegation was led by State Minister for Water Resources Zahid Farooq. Deputy Minister of Water Resources Ministry AKM Enamul Haque Shamim and Senior Secretary Kabir Bin Anwar were also in the delegation. The Indian delegation was led by Jal Shakti (Water Resources) Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. The India-Bangladesh Joint Rivers Commission or JRC was formed in 1972 as a bilateral mechanism to resolve issues of mutual interest on common or transboundary rivers.
The commission's meeting discussed all the issues related to different rivers especially the Ganges, Teesta, Manu, Muhuri, Khoai, Gomti, Dharla, Dudhkumar, and Kushiara rivers. Water distribution of these rivers, exchange of flood information, dealing with river pollution, conducting a joint study on sediment management, river bank protection work, and several ongoing bilateral issues of mutual interest came up in the discussion.
Both sides have finalized the contents of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Interim Water Sharing of Kushiara River. The two countries welcomed the finalization of the design and location of the water intake point on the Feni river to meet the drinking water needs of Sabrum town in Tripura as per the India-Bangladesh MoU signed in October 2019 in this regard.
During the meeting, both parties agreed to conduct a feasibility study for the optimal use of water received by Bangladesh under the 1996 Ganga Water Sharing Agreement.
