India, Bangladesh to hold 7th meeting of JCC, first physical summit since COVID outbreak

India and Bangladesh are set to hold the seventh meeting of the Joint Consultative Commission (JCC) on Sunday, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). It will be the first in-person summit since 2020 and will be co-chaired by Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar and his Bangladeshi counterpart AK Abdul Momen. Notably, the Bangladeshi lawmaker landed in New Delhi on Saturday. 

Sunday’s meeting will be the first physical summit since the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020. India and Bangladesh have been coordinating efforts to combat the spread of the lethal infection with the Modi government donating over 1.2 million doses of life-saving vaccines. Interestingly Momen, on Saturday, extended greetings to PM Modi’s mother Heeraben Modi, wishing her good health and well-being. 

“The JCC will review the entire gamut of bilateral relations, including cooperation in the wake of Covid-19, border management and security, trade & investment, connectivity, energy, water resources, development partnership and regional & multilateral issues,”the  MEA said. 

Momen delivers key note address, calls for more economic collaboration

On Saturday, Momen was received in New Delhi by Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Muhammad Imran along with other high officials from MEA India. Soon after, he delivered a keynote address at a seminar on Economic Diplomacy, arranged by the Bangladesh Mission in the National Capital. In a statement, the Bangladeshi Foreign Ministry said, "FM Momen called for more economic collaboration between Bangladesh and India." 

Both countries resume bus services

In another first since the COVID pandemic,  both countries restarted cross-border bus services earlier this month. According to the High Commission of India in Bangladesh, the bus services via ICP Agartala-Akhaura and ICP Haridaspur-Benapole were flagged off from Dhaka in the early morning. The High Commission has termed the resumption of bus services as a major step forward in enhancing affordable, people-centric connectivity.

"Resumption of India-Bangladesh Cross-Border Bus Services! Bus services b/w India-Bangladesh via ICP Agartala-Akhaura & ICP Haridaspur-Benapole resumed with the Dhaka-Kolkata-Dhaka bus being flagged off from Dhaka early morning today-a major step forward in enhancing affordable, people-centric connectivity," the High Commission tweeted with photographs of buses adorned with flowers.

(Image: ANI)