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Prime Minister Narendra Modi today began his historic two-day visit to Bangladesh by paying homage to the martyrs of the 1971 War of Liberation.
He also visited the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum dedicated to Bangladesh founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
"Beginning the visit by paying homage to the martyrs of the Liberation War of 1971," he tweeted.
Earlier in the day, in a break from protocol, Modi was recieved at the airport by his Bangladeshi counterpart, Sheikh Hasina.
"Leaving for Bangladesh. This visit is going to strengthen the bond between our nations, benefitting people of our countries & our region," Modi tweeted while leaving for Bangladesh.
During the two-day visit, which is part of his policy to deepen engagement with India's immediate neighbourhood, Modi will hold wide-ranging talks with his Bangladeshi counterpart on how to move ties forward.
In Dhaka, Modi is expected to send a strong message to strengthen the hand of his Bangladeshi counterpart, who has been steadfastly helping India curb various Northeast militant groups that used to take refuge in that country besides coming down hard on radical Islamist outfits.
Ahead of the visit, Modi had lauded Hasina for playing an "important role" in making the bilateral ties "strong" and said, "I am certain my visit will be beneficial for the people of both our nations and in the larger good of the South Asian neighbourhood."
Bangladesh and India share a 4,096-km-long border, most of which is porous, and both the countries are likely to try and find ways to enhance security cooperation, particularly to further contain northeast insurgent groups.
Ratification of the Land Boundary Agreement will be a major highlight of Modi's visit to Dhaka.
Earlier this month, Parliament had passed a historic constitution amendment bill seeking to settle India's 41-year- old border issue with Bangladesh. The bill paved way for operationalisation of the 1974 India-Bangladesh Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) that provides for exchange of 161 enclaves between the two countries.
Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar yesterday described Modi's visit to Dhaka as "historic" while terming conclusion of the LBA as a major achievement.
Enhancing rail, road and water connectivity and boosting economic engagement will find priority and a number of pacts are likely to be signed in these areas. A pact to supply diesel to Bangladesh has also been finalised and would be inked.
