Modi, Hasina to launch power supply, international internet gateway

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will jointly launch 100 MW power supply to Bangladesh and third international internet gateway (IIG) on March 23, a Tripura minister said here on Tuesday.

The government earlier announced supply of additional 100 MW of electricity to Bangladesh from Tripura power plants and accordingly 47-km transmission lines were erected linking Tripura power grid to Comilla power grid in eastern Bangladesh.

To improve the internet capacity in northeastern states and other parts of India, New Delhi has set up India's third IIG in Agartala availing the 10 gigabit bandwidth from Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Limited.

"External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj informed Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar that Modi and Hasina would jointly launch the power supply and inaugurate the third IIG on March 23," Tripura Power and Transport Minister Manik Dey told reporters.

"Swaraj requested Sarkar to join the video conferencing programme to be held simultaneously in New Delhi and Dhaka," he said.

The minister, who was recently in Dhaka and attended a series of meetings there to finalise the power tariff, said: "In Dhaka, several meetings were held to finalise the power tariff. It was decided that the electricity would be supplied to Bangladesh at a price of Rs.5.5 per unit."

The Tripura government was ready to provide more power to Bangladesh if the central government has no objection, Dey added.

The Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. and the Power Generation Company of Bangladesh, both government-run companies, set up the 47-km transmission lines on their sides for electricity supply from the Tripura power plants.

During his visit to Dhaka on June 6-7 last year, Modi discussed with Hasina power supply from Tripura.