Dhaka, September 7
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday regretted that India and Bangladesh could not sign the Teesta water sharing deal during his visit to Dhaka, but reaffirmed New Delhi's commitment to ink the accord in the near future.

“I have asked the concerned officials to intensify their efforts towards finding a viable formula which does not cause undue distress to all those, in India or in Bangladesh, who are dependent on the flow of the Teesta river,” he said in an address at the Dhaka University on Wednesday morning.

He said he was hopeful of signing the deal during his trip and both sides had worked very hard to arrive at a solution that would be acceptable to all. “Unfortunately these efforts did not yield the desired results within the time available,” he said. The ambitious accord could not be signed because of objections raised at the last minute by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee saying it would hurt the interests of her state. The cancellation of the agreement has upset Dhaka.

In the context of concerns expressed by Bangladesh over the Tipaimukh dam project in Manipur, the PM assured that India would not take any step that would adversely affect Bangladesh.

Singh observed that power connectivity and energy cooperation were emerging as major pillars of the economic ties between the two countries. Work on a transmission line, which would deliver up to 500 MW of power to Bangladesh from India, has begun. A feasibility study for the establishment of a 1,320 MW-power plant in Khulna has been completed.

He said he was aware many Bangladeshi citizens were disappointed when they were unable to see their favourite local channels when they visited India. There was no rule which prevented the broadcast of Bangladeshi channels in India. “I hope that commercial agreements can be worked so that Indian viewers have the opportunity to listen to the great contemporary exponents of Rabindra Sangeet and Baul in Bangladesh or see the films of the late Tareque Masood,” the PM added.