Agartala-Dhaka bus service: Indo-Bangla talks from April 7

AGARTALA, March 22 ? After a span of about eight months, India and Bangladesh will again sit to discuss the much-awaited Agartala-Dhaka bus service which was put in the back-burner following change of guards in Dhaka. The issue of transit route through Bangladesh from Tripura to other parts of India is also to be discussed in the meeting to be held in Dhaka from April 7 to April 10 next. Tripura Industries Minister Pabitra Kar said, a delegation of high-level officials from both India and Bangladesh will participate in the four-day meeting at Dhaka to boost the Indo-Bangladesh trade ties with special thrust to Tripura. Speaking at a press conference, Industries Minister Pabitra Kar said, it will be secretary level meeting where Union Secretaries of concerned department will discuss bilateral matters with their Bangladesh counterpart. Tripura Industries and Commerce Commissioner, LK Gupta will also participate in the Dhaka meet. Among the issues that will be raised are related to the trade between the two countries transit route through Bangladesh and the most important pending issue like the Dhaka-Agartala bus service. Though the Agartala-Dhaka bus service trial run was held last year from both the sides, ever since Khaleda Zia?s BNP and her Islamist allies came to power in Bangladesh in October last the related files have been gathering dust. New Delhi also seems to have put the matter in the back-burner. The BNP-led by Khaleda Zia came to power which was earlier opposed to the bus service. The transit route through Bangladesh is also a major demand for his land-locked State as the acceptance of the same by Bangladesh may bring a drastic change in the entire socio-economic scenario of Tripura as well as in the whole North-East region. It may be mentioned that, transhipment of materials through Bangladesh is already existing but only limited to horticultural products where the operators at both the ends exchange the products with little value additions. The meeting assumes significance as Tripura is surely to press for transit for all the items to and fro Tripura. The minister also informed that during May next, an international seminar will be organised in Agartala where the representatives of the major business houses of both India and Bangladesh would be invited to study the pros and cons of border trade in Tripura and entire North-east.