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PM Narendra Modi lauds land boundary deal, promises on Teesta isse

by IBNS 08 Jun 2015, 08:25 am

Dhaka, June 8 (IBNS) Using the Land Boundary Agreement as a tool for improving relations with Bangladesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said its is not just about realignment of land, but also meeting of hearts between the people of two countries.

"If you think the Land Boundary Agreement is about a few sq feet of land going this side and that side, then think again. It is a bridge between two nations... a meeting of hearts," PM Modi said on Sunday while addressing the expats.

 "Had such a thing been done elsewhere, it would have been worthy of a Nobel Prize. But we are poor countries, so no one notices such things," he added to thunderous applause.

Ties between the two countries had been forged with blood, shed during Bangladesh's liberation war and the  land boundary agreement was another link in the chain.

Under the agreement the two countries will swap 161 enclaves, whose 50,000-odd inhabitants have been living without nationality and basic public facilities. 

The Prime Minister also raised the  other long-pending pact - the Teesta water sharing, which had not been discussed during this visit. 

But he assured :"a bird, air and water cannot be kept shut... water cannot be a political issue. I assure you, we will find a resolution to Teesta water issue on human principles."