Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a two day visit to Bangladesh from today. The visit is in connection with the commemoration of three epochal events including Mujib Borsho, the birth centenary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The other events are 50 years of the establishment of diplomatic ties between India and Bangladesh and 50 years of Bangladesh’s war of liberation. During the visit, the Prime Minister will attend the National Day programme of Bangladesh as the guest of honour. He will also call on Bangladesh President Md. Abdul Hamid. Foreign Minister of Bangladesh Dr. A.K. Abdul Momen will call on the Prime Minister.
This will be the first visit of Prime Minister Modi to a foreign country since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic, which highlights the priority India attaches to Bangladesh. The Prime Minister had last visited Bangladesh in 2015.
Prime Minister Modi will be the guest of honour at the National Day celebrations of Bangladesh in Dhaka today. It will also commemorate the birth centenary of the Father of the Nation of Bangladesh, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
He will also visit Bangabandhu’s Samadhi in Tungipara to pay his respect. He will also visit the ancient Jashoreshwari Kali Temple, one of the 51 Shaktipeeths in the Puranic tradition to offer prayers to Goddess Kali. He will also visit Orakandi and interact with the representatives of the Matua community. Apart from this, Modi will also have substantive discussions with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. He will also meet Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid and dignitaries.
This is the first foreign visit of Prime Minister Modi after Covid19 pandemic, which itself signifies its importance. Mr. Modi is visiting Bangladesh at the invitation of his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina.
Moreover, Bangladesh is our friendly neighboring country, which shares deep cultural, linguistic and people-to-people ties with India.
India and Bangladesh are likely to sign several MoUs during Prime Minister Modi’s visit. These will be in the field of disaster management and cooperation between some institutions of the two countries. The focus will remain on people to people contact and strengthening the bilateral ties on the strong bonding of history, culture, language and other similarities. India will also extend its support to Bangladesh’s remarkable economic development. India will also express its solidarity and support for Bangladesh’s fight against COVID-19.
Both the leaders first met in 2014 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. Since then, both the leaders have already met several times and are enjoying strong personal bonding, which has further strengthened the bilateral ties between the two neighboring countries. Prime Minister Modi described Bangladesh as a key pillar of India’s “Neighbourhood First” Policy, while his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina also called India a true friend.