Bangladesh urges India to settle Teesta issue without hurting friendly ties

Bangladesh has renewed pressure on India to resolve the Teesta water-sharing dispute while preserving friendly ties. The push gains urgency as Dhaka advances a China-backed river restoration plan for its northern districts.Image used for representational purposes onlyBangladesh does not want its friendly ties with India to worsen over the long-pending Teesta water-sharing agreement, Water Resources Minister Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee has said. He urged New Delhi to take Bangladesh's interests into account while pursuing its own, as Dhaka renewed its push to address the Teesta issue.Anee made the remarks at a seminar in Dhaka on Sunday amid efforts by Bangladesh to move ahead on the proposed Teesta River Comprehensive Management and Restoration Project with China's support. The project is aimed at dealing with recurring floods, river erosion and dry-season water shortages in the country's northern districts."The neighbouring country is a friendly country. They have to think that while they have their interests, we also have ours," Anee was quoted as saying by news portal tbsnews.net. "A friend should protect the interests of a friend. We never want our friendly relations with them to deteriorate," he said.The minister said the government had organised several seminars and consultations since the February election to gather expert views on the proposed Teesta project. He said a detailed study based on those recommendations would help the government take concrete steps. Anee was speaking at the seminar titled 'Sustainable Management of the Teesta River', jointly organised by the Ministry of Water Resources and the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology. Calling the project a major challenge, Anee said people in five to six northern districts had high expectations after suffering for years from river erosion and other problems. "If we fail to implement it, the damage and problems faced by families in those areas will continue to increase. We have to overcome this challenge anyhow," he said.The Teesta issue has remained a major irritant in India-Bangladesh water cooperation for decades. The river originates in the Himalayas and flows through Sikkim and West Bengal before entering Bangladesh, where it eventually joins the Jamuna, the Bangladeshi name for the Brahmaputra. It is important for agriculture and livelihoods in northern Bangladesh, while in West Bengal it is vital for irrigation and power generation. Several hydropower projects are located in the river's upper catchment areas, and nearly half a dozen districts in North Bengal depend on its waters. India and Bangladesh have discussed sharing the Teesta waters since the 1980s. An interim arrangement reached in 1983 provided for 39 per cent of the water to India and 36 per cent to Bangladesh, with the remaining 25 per cent unallocated. Further negotiations followed, but no comprehensive long-term agreement was reached. A draft interim agreement was finalised in 2011 for the dry season, but it could not be signed after the West Bengal government opposed it over concerns about water availability in the state.Anee said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman regularly discusses the project, while departmental and inter-ministerial meetings review its progress. Stressing that a treaty is "urgently needed", he said, "Whether it is called the Teesta treaty or the Teesta master plan, or whatever is necessary to implement this project, we will move towards implementation." During Rahman's official visit to Beijing in June, he held high-level talks with the Chinese leadership and secured Beijing's commitment to expedite the technical feasibility study for the Teesta restoration project.Bangladesh's decision to seek Chinese involvement in the Teesta project has added a strategic dimension to the issue. India has maintained that the matter needs to be addressed through discussions with all relevant stakeholders, including West Bengal. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in July that India's views on the proposed Teesta river project had already been conveyed to Bangladesh, and that India would factor in "all related developments" in its "overall approach to the Teesta issue".The Teesta issue remains separate from the Ganges Water Sharing Treaty, which India and Bangladesh signed in 1996 for 30 years and which is due to expire in December 2026. The two countries share 54 transboundary rivers and deal with water-related matters through the Joint Rivers Commission, while the Teesta agreement continues to remain unresolved.With PTI Inputs- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 18, 2026 10:50 IST