Both sides discussed several ongoing bilateral issues of mutual interest

Bangladesh and India have finalised the text of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on interim water sharing of Kushiyara river. The MoU text was finalised at the 38th ministerial level Joint Rivers Commission (JRC) meeting held in New Delhi on Thursday.

Both sides also welcomed finalization of the design and location of water intake point on the Feni River to meet the drinking water needs of Sabroom town in Tripura as per the October 2019 India-Bangladesh MoU on this subject, India's Ministry of Jal Shakti said on Friday.

Discussions were held on a number of ongoing bilateral issues of mutual interest including river water sharing of common rivers, sharing of flood data, addressing river pollution, conducting joint studies on sedimentation management, river bank protection works, the ministry added.

The Indian delegation was led by Union Minister for Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawat while the Bangladesh delegation was led by State Minister for Water Resources Zaheed Farooque. Deputy Minister for Water Resources AKM Enamul Hoque Shameem was also part of the Bangladesh delegation.

The meeting assumes significance as it was held after a long gap of 12 years, though the technical interactions under the framework of JRC have continued in the intervening period. The meeting was preceded by Water Resources Secretary-level interaction on August 23.

The talks came ahead of an expected India visit by Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. There is, however, no official announcement yet.

One of the important areas of cooperation, where India has been assisting Bangladesh, is sharing of real time flood data. India has recently extended the period of flood data sharing beyond 15th October to help Bangladesh address unforeseen flood events.

Of the 54 rivers that Bangladesh and India share together, seven rivers have already been identified for building a framework for water sharing agreements. It was decided at the meeting to expand this current partnership by adding eight more rivers for data sharing. The JRC Technical Level Committee will further discuss the issue, the Ministry of Jal Shakti said.

The Joint Rivers Commission of India and Bangladesh was constituted in 1972 as a bilateral mechanism to address issues of mutual interest on common / border / transboundary rivers.