NEW DELHI, Nov 24 - As the NDA government at the Centre is weighing all options to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, India will hold a series of meetings with Bangladesh, including a summit level meeting, in the coming weeks.
According to sources, India will host Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen who will arrive here on December 7 on a three-day visit to finalise the agenda of the summit level meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina which will be held on December 17 in virtual mode.
Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla will hold a meeting with Momen on December 8. The Bangladesh Foreign Secretary is also likely to call on External Affairs Minister Dr S Jayshankar.
Bangladesh and India will celebrate Bangladesh�s 50 years of independence together next year and Modi is scheduled to travel to Bangladesh to join the opening celebrations.
Sources said India and Bangladesh are expected to sign four memorandums of understanding (MoUs) during the summit. Officials of the two countries are working on the MoUs. It has been learnt that two of the MoUs will be on improving connectivity between India and Bangladesh.
Sources also said that new rail connectivity between Chilahati-Haldibari is likely to be inaugurated by the two Prime Ministers. The new connectivity is proposed to link Siliguri and Dhaka.
A train service has been proposed from Dhaka to Chilahati to connect with Haldibari. A plan for phase-wise issuance of tourist visa is also under consideration from the day of regular train service.
As of now, there are four rail routes that connect West Bengal with Bangladesh � Petrapole-Benapole, Singhabad-Rohionpur, Gede-Darshana and Radhikapur-Birol.
The Indian Railways has laid 4.5 km of new track from Haldibari to the Indo-Bangladesh border. It has been connected to the Chilahati route, enabling trains to travel from New Jalpaiguri-Sliguri to Dhaka.
There is also a proposal to inaugurate Gandhi-Bangabandhu digital exhibition and to lay the foundation stone of the Mujibnagar-Kolkata road connectivity.
However, the spectre of Citizenship (Amendment) Act, which has been opposed by Bangladesh, hangs over head and the Central government is in a dilemma over implementing the controversial Act. The implementation of the Act may create tension in Bangladesh and may even cast a shadow on Modi�s coming visit to Dhaka.
The Central government has not been able to implement the CAA owing to such factors. Even the rules have not been framed so far. However, recently, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in Kolkata that the government was committed to implementing the new citizenship law, which is also opposed by the Trinamool Congress.
NEW DELHI, Nov 24 - As the NDA government at the Centre is weighing all options to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, India will hold a series of meetings with Bangladesh, including a summit level meeting, in the coming weeks.
According to sources, India will host Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen who will arrive here on December 7 on a three-day visit to finalise the agenda of the summit level meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina which will be held on December 17 in virtual mode.
Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla will hold a meeting with Momen on December 8. The Bangladesh Foreign Secretary is also likely to call on External Affairs Minister Dr S Jayshankar.
Bangladesh and India will celebrate Bangladesh�s 50 years of independence together next year and Modi is scheduled to travel to Bangladesh to join the opening celebrations.
Sources said India and Bangladesh are expected to sign four memorandums of understanding (MoUs) during the summit. Officials of the two countries are working on the MoUs. It has been learnt that two of the MoUs will be on improving connectivity between India and Bangladesh.
Sources also said that new rail connectivity between Chilahati-Haldibari is likely to be inaugurated by the two Prime Ministers. The new connectivity is proposed to link Siliguri and Dhaka.
A train service has been proposed from Dhaka to Chilahati to connect with Haldibari. A plan for phase-wise issuance of tourist visa is also under consideration from the day of regular train service.
As of now, there are four rail routes that connect West Bengal with Bangladesh � Petrapole-Benapole, Singhabad-Rohionpur, Gede-Darshana and Radhikapur-Birol.
The Indian Railways has laid 4.5 km of new track from Haldibari to the Indo-Bangladesh border. It has been connected to the Chilahati route, enabling trains to travel from New Jalpaiguri-Sliguri to Dhaka.
There is also a proposal to inaugurate Gandhi-Bangabandhu digital exhibition and to lay the foundation stone of the Mujibnagar-Kolkata road connectivity.
However, the spectre of Citizenship (Amendment) Act, which has been opposed by Bangladesh, hangs over head and the Central government is in a dilemma over implementing the controversial Act. The implementation of the Act may create tension in Bangladesh and may even cast a shadow on Modi�s coming visit to Dhaka.
The Central government has not been able to implement the CAA owing to such factors. Even the rules have not been framed so far. However, recently, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in Kolkata that the government was committed to implementing the new citizenship law, which is also opposed by the Trinamool Congress.
