Bangladesh ‘significant pillar’ of India’s Neighbourhood First policy: Modi

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi today asserted that Bangladesh remains a "significant pillar" of India's Neighbourhood First policy as he held a virtual summit with his counterpart Sheikh Hasina.

Modi told Hasina that his government has focused on maintaining strong relations with Bangladesh right from day one it came to power in May 2014.

"It has been a priority of my government to bring depth and strength in ties with Bangladesh," he said and pointed to the resolution of the land boundary issue and enhanced cross-border connectivity.

Modi lauded Hasina's leadership, which he said, "reflected the traits of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman".

Cooperation between India and Bangladesh has been good notwithstanding coronavirus pandemic, the Indian PM observed, reports our New Delhi correspondent.

Seeking to strike an emotional chord with Bangla-speaking people, Modi greeted Hasina by speaking two sentences in Bangla "Bijoy dibosher onek onek abhinandan aar poush parbon-er shubhechcha" before he began his speech.

Modi said, "It is a matter of pride for us to celebrate with Bangladesh the latter's victory over anti-liberation forces" and paid tributes to those who sacrificed their lives to win the Liberation War.

He congratulated Hasina on behalf of the people of India on Mujib birth centenary and thanked the Bangladesh PM for inviting him to visit her country next year. "It will be a matter of pride for me to pay tributes to Bangabandhu" at that time, Modi added.

He said Bangabandhu's messages are "eternally relevant and it is in this spirit that we respect his legacy whose glimpses are clearly reflected in your leadership."

The two leaders jointly released a commemorative stamp and opened the "Bangabandhu-Bapu (Mahatma Gandhi) Digital Exhibition".

The stamp pays tribute to the Father of the Nation of Bangladesh whom Modi has hailed as "one of the greatest personalities of the last century".

Referring to the inauguration of the digital exhibition, Modi expressed hope that the two leaders would inspire the youths of the two countries.

The two prime ministers inaugurated the Chilahati-Haldibari rail link between India and Bangladesh, reviving a connectivity that was snapped by the India-Pakistan war in 1965, in a move that will help strengthen movement of people and goods between Bangladesh and West Bengal and north-eastern Indian states.

Initially, the link will be used to transport goods and passenger movement will start after infrastructure is ready.

The two countries have already reopened four of six rail links that were suspended in 1965: Petrapole- Benapole, Gede-Darshana, Singhabad-Rohanpur and Radhikapur-Birol. The Haldibari-Chilahati link was part of the main broad gauge route between Kolkata and Siliguri.

The "Bangabandhu-Bapu Digital Exhibition", which pays tribute to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and India's Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, will initially be on display in New Delhi before travelling to different locations in Bangladesh and the UN and culminating in Kolkata in 2022.

The "Bangabandhu-Bapu Digital Exhibition", which pays tribute to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and India's Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, will initially be on display in New Delhi before travelling to different locations in Bangladesh and the UN and culminating in Kolkata in 2022.