DHAKA, 16 September 2004 — India and Bangladesh failed to narrow down their differences over water sharing in their second day of talks yesterday.
The two sides ended their talks authorizing a technical panel of the Joint Committee of Experts to follow up on several studies conducted recently. Those privy to the meeting said Bangladesh refused to accept Indian formula of sharing the water of Teesta River.
“We’ve made progress, but still have differences on several points and we’re still in discussion,” Bangladesh Water Resources Secretary Dr. Mohammad Omar Farooq Khan told reporters after the first round of talks.
As the two sides failed to reach a consensus, the secretary-level Joint Committee of Experts meeting scheduled to conclude at 1 p.m. was stretched till 5 p.m.
Khan said the talks were held in a very cordial atmosphere and the two sides tried to narrow down the differences and find a solution. Indian Water Resources Secretary Vinod K. Duggal said, “It requires give and take” from both sides to come to an agreement.
Sources said water experts continued deliberations on sharing of the Teesta River water on the basis of the report submitted by a technical expert committee.
They said the Indian side proposed a five-year scientific study on the flow of Teesta while Bangladesh did not oppose it, but wanted an interim arrangement for sharing the waters until the study is completed. The two sides also discussed the flow of water at different points of the river flowing through the two countries.
Experts from Bangladesh proposed keeping 20 to 30 percent water reserved in the lean period and sharing the rest equally. But India suggested that 10 to 12 percent of Teesta water be reserved in the lean period and the rest shared on the basis of the size of the river’s catchment area. The catchment area of Teesta in India is larger than that in Bangladesh.
The water flow in the Teesta in the dry season (November to May) has declined to around 4,000 cusecs in recent years from 5,000 cusecs. Bangladesh wants an immediate agreement to get its due share of the Teesta waters to prevent an ecological disaster.
The Indian water secretary led his country’s 11-member team at the two-day talks while a 13-member Bangladesh team was led by the secretary of water resources.
Formed at the 32nd meeting of the Joint River Commission (JRC) in 1997, the Joint Experts Committee was also mandated to work out water-sharing formula for the Teesta and six other common rivers. The other rivers are Manu, Mahuri, Khoai, Gorai, Dharla and Dudkumar.
Rains Death Toll Mounts
The rains continued to batter Bangladesh for the fourth straight day yesterday raising the flood death toll to 23, officials said. Five bodies were plucked from Jamuna River after a small boat sank overnight in swift currents, raising the death toll from flood-related causes to 23 in the past four days. The rains that lashed yesterday broke 50 years’ record.
