Bangladesh bets big on Manmohan's visit

A day after the external affairs ministry announced Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Bangladesh in September, the Bangladesh government today expressed hope that a number of pending economic and social issues between the two neighbours would be resolved.

When asked about Singh’s visit, Bangladesh Commerce Minister Muhammad Faruk Khan told Business Standard, “There are a lot of issues that were being highlighted in official-level talks for a long time and which were taken forward during Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to India in January 2010. We would be happy if those issues were resolved during the Indian Prime Minister’s visit.”

“As a commerce minister, I believe that a deal would be signed with India on duty-free access for 61 items on the negative list. Moreover, an agreement on the removal of certain tariff and non-tariff barriers are also expected in the line of official-level understanding,” he added.

The announcement of the PM’s visit is believed to be an effort to downplay the controversy triggered by Singh’s off-the record comment that 25 per cent of Bangladeshis are “anti-Indian” under the influence of Jamaat-e-Islami, an opposition party in that country. External Affairs Minister S M Krishna is scheduled to be in Dhaka tomorrow for a three-day visit and may meet top Bangladeshi leaders, as a curtain raiser for the PM’s visit.