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Speech by His Excellency Mr. E. Ahamed
Hon'ble Minister of State for External Affairs at the inauguration of
the
Indian visa Application Center.
Dhaka, 18th December 2005 at 1600 hrs
Your Excellency Janab
Quamrul Islam, Hon'ble State Minister for Expatriate's
Welfare and Overseas Employment,
Mrs, Veena Sikri, High Commissioner of India
Mr. A.J. Bose, Chief Executive Officer, State Bank of India
Distinguished Guests,
Members of the Media,
Ladies and Gentlemen
The people of India and Bangladesh share an abiding friendship, based
on the strong foundations of shared values and heritage, geographical
proximity and the complementarities of our economies. Our common land
boundary of more then 4,000 kms, our cultural affinities and ethnic
linkages provide the strong underpinning for our rich and dynamic relationship.
It is only natural, therefore, that among the more important dimensions
of our multi-faceted friendship is the close and intense people-to-people
contacts. Large number of our citizens visit each other's country regularly
for a variety of purposes, including business, medical, pilgrimage,
education and training, meeting with relatives or just tourism.
We issue nearly five lakh or half a million visas annually through
the High Commission of India in Dhaka and the two Assistant High Commission
of India in Chittagong and Rajshahi. This means that over 2,300 Indian
Visas are Issues daily, 1,600 of which are issued from Dhaka alone.
This is by any standards, a gigantic exercise, perhaps among the largest
of its kind anywhere in the world. Our efforts all along have been to
modernize, computerize and streamline the process of issuing visas so
as to make the process transparent, fair and user- friendly. Over the
years, however, the high demand for Indian visas and consequently the
sheer numbers of visas applications received have outstripped our logistical
facilities and led to inconveniences. There have been long queues, given
the necessarily limited working hours and the limitations of space outside
the High Commission of India, Dhaka.
The establishment of the India Visa Application Centre is an important
first step in making it easier for the citizens of Bangladesh to apply
for and obtain visas to visit India.
This Centre will be managed by the State Bank of India, one of India's
largest banks, in which the Government of India is the majority share-holder.
The facilities created by the State bank of India spread over 16,000
square feet of space will enable applicant to apply in an air-conditioned
environment of total comfort, with the benefit of custom-developed computer
programming and software. Since applications will be received for six
hours each working day from 8 AM to 2 PM, this should eliminate the
need for long queues with all its attendant difficulties.
By making it easier to apply for and obtain Indian visas, this Centre
should greatly encourage people-to-people contacts between Bangladesh
and India. The government of India believes that such people-to-people
contacts constitute an important aspect of our relationship since this
promotes greater intersection and through this build mutual trust and
friendship. Such interaction also enhances business linkages and promotes
trade, investment and economic cooperation. This is not only mutually
beneficial for both our economics, it also creates mutual stakes in
each other’s prosperity and, thereby, leads to greater understanding.
Enhanced economic collaboration between Bangladesh and India will ensure
the more efficient use of our respective national resources through
exploitation of economic complementarities. This will strengthen the
individual and collective capacities of our two economics to meet the
challenges of globalizations. It will enhance the region’s attraction
for foreign investment and bring about greater economic stability.
Finally, we do believe that a greater facilitation of legal, and hassle-free
travel and trade between our two countries will substantially ensure
that such exchanges move from illegitimate to legitimate channel.
Easier movement of people across border is a natural corollary of the
growing bilateral and regional integration in South and South East Asia.
Both Bangladesh and India are deeply committed to the success of SAARC
and BIMSTEC. With full implementation of SAFTA and BIMSTEC Free Trade
Agreement next year, we can expect an inevitable upsurge in the flow
of goods and people across these regions.
Our two nations must prepare for this by putting in place mechanisms
and the necessary infrastructure that will be able to cope with the
enhanced movements of good and peoples. The Land Customs Station along
Bangladesh-India border needs to be modernized. I am happy to note that
the two governments are working on the program for coordinated development
of the Land Customs Stations on both sides. To complement this initiative,
trans-border transport arrangement need to be strengthened considerably.
Our bilateral and regional trade should move through containers along
the road, river and rail routes rather than the present system through
open trucks and open rails. Dhaka-Kolkata bus service, started in 2001,
has proved to be resounding success. With the Government of Bangladesh’s
recent decision to issue double-entry visas, the Dhaka-Agartala bus
service is also becoming increasingly popular. There should be many
more such bus service between Agartala through Sylhet to Shillong, between
Dhaka through Changrabandha to Siliguri.
There is growing popular demand in both our countries for the introduction
of passenger train service. Way back in 2001, trail runs had been held
for the Sealdah-Jamuna Bridge-Joydevpur passenger train. Unfortunately,
this was so far not been operationalized.
In 2006, the Government of Bangladesh and India will be reviewing the
Revised Travel Agreement (RTA) signed between us in 2001. This RTA is
an important umbrella agreement for the issue of visas and provision
of allied services. Let us work together to ensure that we can further
strengthen the RTA to make it a more effective instrument for promoting
people-to-people contacts, thereby further deepening and strengthening
our friendship and cooperation.
I wish the Indian Visa Application Centre every success in its endeavours.
It is an honour to inaugurate this Centre jointly with His Excellency,
Janab Quamrul Islam, Hon’ble State Minister for Expatriate’s
Welfare and Overseas Employment.
Thank you.
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