Bangladesh, India to Settle River Water Sharing Dispute – Official

Text of report by staff correspondent headlined “Dhaka hopes to settle Teesta water sharing at JRC meeting” published by Bangladeshi New Age website on 13 August

Bangladesh hopes to reach an agreement with India regarding the sharing of the Teesta [river] water at the ministerial-level meeting scheduled to be held in New Delhi between October and November.

“Despite a consensus on the issue, the countries have decided to assign a technical committee of officials and experts of both the countries to resolve the issue,” the Water Resources Secretary Syed Mohammad Zobaer told newsmen at a briefing on the outcome of the 7- 8 August secretary-level talks in New Delhi in his office on Sunday [12 August].

He said the committee would meet in Dhaka in two months to narrow down the differences for the signing of the agreement.

“The proposal of the technical committee will be finalised at the ministerial meeting of the Joint Rivers Commission in New Delhi,” Zobaer aid.

He told newsmen that Dhaka had proposed equally sharing 80 per cent of the Teesta water, keeping the rest for natural flow, while New Delhi proposed sharing 70 per cent of the water based on command area.

As for use of the Gajaldoba barrage water, he said, “A technical committee has been formed to reach a consensus on the issue. It will sit in Dhaka in a month for a resolution. The Joint Rivers Commission meeting will also discuss the issue.”

It is yet to be settled whether Bangladesh will use the Gajaldoba water flowing through Bangladesh or it will also be shared with India.

Zobaer said the agenda of the New Delhi meeting had touched on the water flow of seven more rivers, protection of the banks of bordering rivers and dredging of the River Ichhamati.

(c) 2007 BBC Monitoring South Asia. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.