No change in Teesta related woes of Bangladesh

Indian Prime Minister in a welcome move has assured Bangladesh of a fair solution regarding the dispute over sharing waters of Feni and Teesta rivers. Terming water sharing of common rivers as a human issue Modi stressed on the fact that it should not become a source of discord. We agree with his sentiments but the fact is sharing of common rivers for decades has been a major source of discord between the two neighbours. The water dispute with India is as old as Bangladesh itself. Actually it started even before Bangladesh came into being when India started to build the Farakka Barrage on the Ganges to divert water for flushing silt from the Hooghly River.
Bangladesh has strong reasons to feel aggrieved particularly over the sharing of Teesta river water. The proposed treaty on Teesta is being delayed on one pretext or the other. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Bannerjee's assurance in February this year, during her last visit, that we should have faith in her on Teesta water sharing deal was a very positive signal for us. Yet even after her latest visit to Bangladesh the fate of the Teesta treaty remains uncertain.  It is a matter of great disappointment for Bangladesh. Bangladesh did not expect the deal to be signed during this visit but observers here expected at least some progress or commitment.
Teesta water is vital for irrigating around 6.4 lakh hectares of cropland in Bangladesh’s northern part during the lean season. India has taken up a scheme recently to irrigate nine lakh hectares of its land with water from the Teesta, at a time when  Bangladesh is suffering too  badly from the scarcity of waterfrom this river.    Bangladesh and India have 1,116 km of riverine boundaries and the neighbours share 54 rivers. However they have only the 1996 water sharing treaty on the Ganges. Obviously, despite the Ganges treaty there is still much progress that needs to be accomplished. We must categorically state that India’s unilateral actions in upstream are in breach of international conventions. Bangladesh and India have an obligation to work together further through diplomatic channels to resolve common water issues.
The India Prime Minister seems to be serious about the issue and we hope that he will persuade the different concerned state governments to support fair deals regarding sharing of river waters.  

 

No change in Teesta related woes of Bangladesh

Indian Prime Minister in a welcome move has assured Bangladesh of a fair solution regarding the dispute over sharing waters of Feni and Teesta rivers. Terming water sharing of common rivers as a human issue Modi stressed on the fact that it should not become a source of discord. We agree with his sentiments but the fact is sharing of common rivers for decades has been a major source of discord between the two neighbours. The water dispute with India is as old as Bangladesh itself. Actually it started even before Bangladesh came into being when India started to build the Farakka Barrage on the Ganges to divert water for flushing silt from the Hooghly River. Bangladesh has strong reasons to feel aggrieved particularly over the sharing of Teesta river water. The proposed treaty on Teesta is being delayed on one pretext or the other. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Bannerjees assurance in February this year, during her last visit, that we should have faith in her on Teesta water sharing deal was a very positive signal for us. Yet even after her latest visit to Bangladesh the fate of the Teesta treaty remains uncertain. It is a matter of great disappointment for Bangladesh. Bangladesh did not expect the deal to be signed during this visit but observers here expected at least some progress or commitment. Teesta water is vital for irrigating around 6.4 lakh hectares of cropland in Bangladeshs northern part during the lean season. India has taken up a scheme recently to irrigate nine lakh hectares of its land with water from the Teesta, at a time when Bangladesh is suffering too badly from the scarcity of waterfrom this river. Bangladesh and India have 1,116 km of riverine boundaries and the neighbours share 54 rivers. However they have only the 1996 water sharing treaty on the Ganges. Obviously, despite the Ganges treaty there is still much progress that needs to be accomplished. We must categorically state that Indias unilateral actions in upstream are in breach of international conventions. Bangladesh and India have an obligation to work together further through diplomatic channels to resolve common water issues. The India Prime Minister seems to be serious about the issue and we hope that he will persuade the different concerned state governments to support fair deals regarding sharing of river waters.