DHAKA / AGARTALA, June 1 (TIWN):According to highly placed sources in Dhaka, Bangladesh is preparing to push for signing of the much-awaited Teesta water sharing deal and construction of a barrage over the trans-boundary river Padma, among other issues, during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Dhaka scheduled for June 6-7.Sources said the water resources ministry has proposed that at least three specific issues – signing of Teesta deal, Feni water sharing and construction of ‘Ganges barrage’ at Pangsha in Rajbari – should be on the agenda for the meeting between the two prime ministers, according to officials.
‘The prime minister-level meeting will discuss issues of mutual interests. We have made all preparations for taking up the outstanding problems with the Indian prime minister in the bilateral talks,’ water resources minister Anisul Islam Mahmud told .He skipped a direct answer when asked whether the two countries would be able to sign the Teesta water sharing deal. ‘Many things are done at the last moment during such high-level bilateral talks,’ the minister said.The signing of the much-hyped Teesta water sharing agreement has reportedly been kept on hold following West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s objection to the water sharing in 2011.


All preparations were made for the signing of the Teesta treaty during the then Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Dhaka in September 2011.
Officials said that Teesta deal still depended on the decision of Mamata, who is supposed to arrive in Dhaka on June 5 to join Modi.
Indian external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Sunday said the Teesta water sharing agreement would not be signed during Narendra Modi’s visit to Bangladesh.
India and Bangladesh earlier exchanged drafts of the interim agreement on the principles of water-sharing of the river Teesta that enters Bangladesh through Nilphamari border and flows down Rangpur.
Over seven lakh hectares of farmland in the country’s north depends on the Teesta water for irrigation during lean season.
He said Bangladesh would seek cooperation of India in the implementation of the $4-billion Ganges Barrage Project in the south-western region of the country.
The proposed barrage would provide irrigation for around 1.90 million hectares in the greater districts of Kushtia, Faridpur, Jessore, Khulna, Barisal, Pabna and Rajshahi.
India commissioned a barrage across the Ganges at Farakka to divert 40,000 cusec of water into the Bhagirathi-Hoogly river in West Bengal for the purpose of flushing the silts to improve the navigability of the Kolkata port, official documents show.
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India has requested Bangladesh to share the complete feasibility report, including the mathematical modeling and morphological studies.
The proposed barrage would crate a reservoir with a capacity of about 29,00million cubic meters of water.
Although the two neighbours share 54 trans-boundary rivers, the countries have an agreement only on Ganges water sharing.