POBNEWS24, Dhaka Aug 25, 2022 : After a long time, the water resources ministers of Bangladesh and India are sitting in the Joint River Commission (JRC) meeting in New Delhi today. Ahead of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s upcoming visit to India, the meeting may decide on signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on extracting irrigation water from the upstream of the Kushiara river bordering Sylhet. Apart from this, the same rivers including Teesta will be discussed. Earlier, the water resources secretaries held a two-day meeting on Tuesday.
The decisions taken in the JRC ministerial meeting today will be discussed in the Prime Minister’s meeting.
The concerned officials said that discussions have been going on with India for several years about bringing water from the Kushiara river for irrigation in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh wants to connect Rahimpur with the upstream of Kushiara by digging a canal. Bangladesh needs that water to cultivate about five thousand hectares of land in Sylhet region. India has no objection to this. The MoU may be finalized at the ministerial level meeting of JRC in New Delhi on Thursday.
Minister of State for Water Resources Zahid Farooq said before leaving for New Delhi, ‘We want the Teesta water distribution agreement as soon as possible. Of course I will bring up the topic of Teesta agreement. ‘
