India, Bangladesh to sign civil nuclear pact

 India and Bangladesh will ink a framework agreement for civil nuclear cooperation during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s four-day visit to New Delhi beginning on Friday.

Hasina’s meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday will be followed by signing of more than 20 pacts, Sripriya Ranganathan, Joint Secretary (Bangladesh-Myanmar) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said on Thursday.

The Hasina government has been exploring the atomic energy option to meet growing demands of power-starved Bangladesh. New Delhi is likely to offer its support to Dhaka, starting with capacity building in the area of peaceful use of nuclear energy. India is also exploring options for a joint venture with Russia for building nuclear power plants in Bangladesh.

Ranganathan said the two countries would also sign a Memorandum of Understanding for laying a framework for bilateral defence cooperation.

PM invites Mamata

Modi has invited West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to attend the lunch he would host for his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina in New Delhi on Saturday.
Banerjee has accepted the invitation. She will join Modi and Hasina during the inauguration of new bus and train services between Kolkata and Khulna in Bangladesh through video-conferencing.