Steps taken to improve connectivity with India:B'desh minister

A three-day tourism fair was inaugurated here today amid talks on ways to increase connectivity between neighbouring countries -India, Bangladesh and Nepal.

Bangladesh Tourism Minister Shahjahan Kamal said both India and his country have taken steps to ensure easy and hurdle-free travel for the tourists.

There exists a sense of nostalgia among millions in West Bengal, whose ancestors hailed from present-day Bangladesh, the minister said after inaugurating Travel and Tourism Fair (TTF) here.

"The two countries have taken measures to increase connectivity through roads, rail and air, facilitating tourists from India to visit Bangladesh easily," he said.

Apart from being a "culturally rich" country, Bangladesh, a land of natural beauty, also boasts of the world's largest unbroken beach at Coxbazar, the minister said.

There are nine daily flights that operate between the two countries daily, apart from train services connecting Kolkata with Dhaka and Khulna, an official said.

Nepal consul general in Kolkata, Ek Narayan Aryal, said the three neighbours can sew up a tourist circuit.

"India, Nepal and Bangladesh are very close neighbours. We can create a tourist circuit to reach out to people of the three countries," Aryal said.

The tourism fair at Netaji Indoor Stadium, in its 30th year, saw the participation of by 13 countries and 28 states in the country, Sanjiv Agarwal, the CEO of Fairfest - the organizer of the event - said.