Meet on water sharing on August 25 ahead of Bangladesh PM's visit

Ahead of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to India, a minister-level meeting of the Bangladesh-India Joint Rivers Commission is scheduled on August 25, sources said.

No official comment has been made by the government but sources said water-sharing treaties of the Teesta and other rivers may be discussed in the meeting.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to travel to India on September 5 on a three-day visit during which defence cooperation and regional stability are likely to be the focus of the talks with her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, an official said on Monday.

The Teesta river dispute is an important point of bilateral talks between India and Bangladesh, as the latter has sought a fair and equitable distribution of Teesta waters from India.

The two countries signed an agreement in 2011 to share surface waters at the Farakka Barrage near their mutual border. However, the proposed deal was called off after repeated objections by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.