Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, now in New York, is scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) today, reports UNB. This will be their first interaction as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina could not attend Modi’s swearing-in ceremony in May last due to her Japan visit at that time. Allother Saarc leaders attended the function while Bangladesh was represented by Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury. The crucial meeting between Hasina and Modi will take place in between 1pm and 2pm (New York time), said an official here. Before her meeting with Modi, the Prime Minister will deliver her speech at the UNGA from 11am-12 pm (New York time). She will deliver the speech in Bangla as usual. The meeting will be held within a week of the third meeting of the Joint Consultative Commission (JCC) between Bangladesh and India held in New Delhi on September 20. Before the first-ever Hasina-Modi meeting after the January-5 election in Bangladesh and formation of new government in New Delhi, both the countries had a chance to review the entire bilateral issues at the JCC. The Indian government led by Modi has been showing high interest in enhancing ties with Bangladesh. Earlier, Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had chosen Dhaka for her first standalone foreign trip in July. In the JCC, Dhaka agreed on a proposal to set up a special economic zone for Indian investors and two sides also agreed on various proposals to enhance rail and bus connectivity. But there had been no progress on the two major issues - Teesta water sharing deal and Land Boundary Agreement (LBA). Bangladesh has been urging India to move on these issues, which requires stronger political will in India. It is expected that these issues will come up for discussion when the two leaders will meet in New York today.
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