PM Modi to receive award on behalf of Vajpayee in Dhaka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will receive the Award of Liberation War Honour on behalf of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at Bangabhaban in Dhaka on Sunday.

Vajpayee is being given this honour because as India's Foreign Minister and Prime Minister he placed great emphasis on having strong ties with Bangladesh.

Sunday being the final day of his two-day official visit to Bangladesh, Prime Minister Modi will also visit Dhakeshwari Temple and the Ramakrishna Mission.

On Saturday, India and Bangladesh signed 19 agreements and MoUs on several issues apart from the exchange of the Instruments of Ratification of the Land Boundary Agreement. The agreements and MoUs include those on maritime security, bus services, coastal shipping, cultural exchange programs, co-operation in education sector and joint research of oceanography.

Prime Minister Modi's visit is expected to give a boost to bilateral trade and commerce. Several MoUs have been signed in this regard. The include an MoU on creating an economic zones for Indian companies in Mongla and Bheramara. The movement of goods is also to be made easier through the MoU on the cooperation of maritime and use of Chittagong and Mongla ports.

Both governments have also inked a consent letter for insurance development and to create an insurance regulatory authority in Bangladesh.

India has also extended Line of Credit of two billion dollars to Bangladesh to support infrastructure and other development activities.

On Saturday night, Prime Minister Modi attended a state banquet hosted by his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina here.