Bangladesh has taken up massive preparations to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his maiden visit to Dhaka on June 6.
The Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday, approved drafts of three agreements which will be signed during Mr. Modi’s visit.
The deals are expected to boost trade between the two countries. The agreement includes an understanding with Bangladesh Standard Testing Institution (BSTI) and Bureau of Indian Standard on cooperation in the field of standardisation and conformity, Cabinet Secretary M. Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told the media. With this, goods made in Bangladesh or India can be certified by either BSTI or BIS and will not require further verification.
The other two agreements are protocols for passenger bus services between Kolkata and Agartala via Bangladesh and from Dhaka to Guwahati via Shillong.
Like his predecessor, Dr Manmohan Singh, Mr. Modi will be accompanied by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will arrive here a day ahead on June 5, sources said.
Sources told The Hindu that Dhaka and New Delhi have negotiated a host of deals including agreement, protocol, memorandum on trade, connectivity, people-to-people contact, education and other areas to be signed during the presence of the two Prime Ministers.
Significantly an MoU on Passenger Movement in the Inland Water Routes and on the Coastal Shipping Routes will be signed by the two Prime Ministers.
An instrument related to the Land Boundary Agreement, ratified by Parliament recently, will also be exchanged during the signing ceremony.
Mr. Modi will visit the Martyrs memorial of the Bangladesh liberation war at Savar and Bangabandhu Museum, the historic house in Dhamnadi, where the founding father and president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was assassinated in 1975.
Followed by official talks, a tete-a-tete between the two Prime Ministers will be held.
Mr. Modi will call on President Abdul Hamid and attend a congregation at the century-old Dhakeshwari Temple in Dhaka.
