File photo of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will be accompanying Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his two-day trip to Bangladesh beginning June 6, sources have confirmed to NDTV.
But does her decision to go to Dhaka signal a breakthrough on the Teesta water sharing pact? No confirmation on that. So the piece de resistance of the visit, at least as of now, will be the signing of the Land Boundary Agreement to resolve the enclave imbroglio between the two countries.
PM Modi had sounded out Ms Banerjee on accompanying him to Dhaka when he was in Kolkata on 9 and 10 May. Today, the Prime Minister's Office has reportedly sent a formal invitation to the Chief Minister's Office, asking her to join him in Dhaka and she has accepted.
Much rides on the coming visit. Besides the implementation of the crucial land boundary agreement with Bangladesh, several key bus services are likely to be announced, including a direct bus service from Kolkata to Agartala via Dhaka and a daily bus service from Dhaka to Guwahati via Shillong.
Also on the anvil is India's plan to lease submarine internet bandwidth from Bangladesh, which should bolster net connectivity in the northeast. For the first time, direct shipping routes between India and Bangladesh are also likely to be announced.
The question mark over the Teesta pact, however, may be a bit of a dampner.
In 2011, Ms Banerjee had refused to accompany former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Dhaka, thereby torpedoing the deal, which was supposed to be the showpiece of his visit.
Water sharing is a delicate issue in North Bengal, which is dependent on Teesta.
Giving way on the issue can weaken Ms Banerjee's position in North Bengal in view of the assembly elections in the state, which is to be held next year. However, Ms Banerjee, during her visit to Dhaka in February, had asked Bangladesh to keep faith and said the problem will be resolved.