Some unfinished business

No doubt Bangladesh has come a long way and resolved several outstanding bilateral issues with India. Among the major ones are the finalisation of the maritime boundary between the two countries, the transfer of the enclaves to Bangladesh as opted by the residents as well as the finalisation of the land boundary. Visits by the head of governments of India and Bangladesh have over time given more content to the bilateral relations and a plethora of activities such as trade, connectivity and investment in communication. Thanks to the wise leadership of both India and Bangladesh the two countries have come closer.  The two countries are asymmetric in size, population and defense capabilities. Yet Bangladesh has acted in a mature way to clear the backlog of tasks. Today both India and Bangladesh have a whole pack of agreements and memoranda of understanding on several vital matters of mutual interests.

However neither has India been so fortunate with her other neighbours nor have these other neighbours received consideration from India. With Pakistan she has fought three wars and was involved in many skirmishes. With Sri Lanka she was enmeshed in the island country's internal ethnic war and paid a heavy price in men and material. She had her outstanding Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi give his life on this count. India had used deft diplomacy or even overbearing behaviour to keep her other two immediate neighbours, Nepal and Bhutan, in line, and to keep the peace in their respective areas. India's relationship with her biggest neighbour China has been cordial in spite of its humiliation in the Sino Indian war in 1962. India seems to now seek a peaceful future for herself.

It is precisely this fact that has prompted Bangladesh to work with India. Together they had agreed to international arbitration to resolve the issue of maritime boundary. It is in that spirit that India agreed to finally delineate the land boundary with Bangladesh. It also agreed to the apportioning of enclaves between the two countries in a spirit of goodwill.

Yet there are a few more issues that must be resolved quickly in the near future. Their peaceful resolution will help put the bilateral relationship on an even keel.

The foremost issue before the two countries is the equitable sharing of the waters of the fifty or more common rivers. This is a complex, expensive and not easily resolvable matter. Both the countries suffer water shortage during the dry season and floods during the monsoon. Lives are lost and crops damaged each year when unpredictable nature spreads havoc in the two lands. Bangladesh is the largest delta in the world where the three river systems coming from India flow through her to the Bay of Bengal. What, therefore, is the way out?

Both the countries must pool resources and bring modern technology not only to tame the recalcitrant common rivers but also provide water when there is severe drought. Let us agree to a timeline when both countries should pool both internal and external resources not only to study the behaviour of the rivers and draw common plans to tame but also to rejuvenate the rivers as weather changes. A massive plan to store water when there is an excess of it in our flood plains and in the upstream storage areas, and in between mountains of Nepal and Bhutan can be made. A most modern and if need be a complex storage system must be planned, built and operated to release water in times of need to farmers in all four countries. Due compensation must be given from a common fund to countries cooperating in this huge plan to increase water flow as and when needed by each country. This plan should, if plausible, take the need of south India if fund and feasibility permit. Why should we let sweet water drain to the sea when we all need it, if we are able to accumulate and supply it on time? Let the water that devastates our land turn from a bane to a boon for all these four countries. A sophisticated matrix can be developed by our engineers, mathematicians, geologists and agricultural experts. Nothing should be made free and water retained and supplied on time to each country and region should be paid for. All this may sound wooly but it can be made feasible and doable. Just apportioning water by sharing the flow of common rivers is not time- befitting anymore. 

The sharing of the Teesta river waters is doable now. River linking in India would make the overall situation worse in the region. Temporary arrangements cannot meet permanent needs. 

The other matter that demands attention of all stakeholders in Bangladesh-India relations is border killings. This should be stopped once and for all. India has built the border fence with padlocked gates to stop infiltration and smuggling. Can India answer why it has to kill or maim citizens of Bangladesh when the Indian border guards control access to the gates and the gates are locked or opened by them? The border guards are there to discourage illegal border crossings and smuggling of goods. They are not there to kill.

Finally, it seems that relations between the two countries cannot grow healthily if trade with Bangladesh is always in India's favour. As of today, India sells too much to Bangladesh and buys too little from her. This situation is getting worse as India is lax in checking its goods that are smuggled to Bangladesh. Again Bangladesh seems to be burdened with non-tariff and para-tariff barriers. It is imperative that India lift them meticulously and swiftly. No one says that that exports and imports should be at par. But they cannot be skewed in favour of India, like it is now.

India should make special dispensation for Bangladesh through easier flow of Bangladeshi goods that will help bring equilibrium in the balance of trade. India would be surprised how much the trade volume could grow and how much she would benefit. If Bangladeshi goods were sold anywhere in the world, India would also be a great beneficiary. The future of trade between our two countries would no doubt be brighter.

............................................................................................

The writer is a former Ambassador and a commentator on current affairs.

E-mail: ashfaque303@gmail.com