KOLKATA: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has received invitations from the government of People’s Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to study the prospects of Chinese investment in West Bengal.
Mamata may visit the northern neighbour in the first week of June and is likely to meet prospective investors in Beijing and Shanghai. She has expressed her interest in the manufacturing expertise of China and wants them to invest in her industry-starved state. Economist-turned-finance minister Amit Mitra is also likely to accompany her to China.
China’s consul-general in Kolkata, Ma Zhanwu, had earlier invited the West Bengal chief minister to visit Jiangsu and Yunan provinces for cultural and economic exchanges. Though Jiangsu visit may be undertaken as the province lies just north of Shanghai, visit to Yunnan is highly unlikely during this visit. During a Bengal Global Business Summit, a Chinese firm had shown interest in agro-processing and wanted a local partner based in West Bengal.
Dhaka rejects Mamata’s Torsha deal
On the other hand, Bangladesh has rejected Mamata’s proposal of sharing waters of Torsha and two other smaller rivers instead of Teesta. The eastern neighbour stated that it will not accept anything less than Teesta river water.
“We held talks over Teesta water. We are not ready to accept alternate proposals for water of any other rivers. We had expectations that the deal over Teesta would be done during this visit (of Sheikh Hasina) but unfortunately it couldn’t be sealed,” Bangladesh information minister Hasanul Haq Inu told the media on Tuesday.
Sources in Bangladesh media revealed that Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is very upset over the failure to seal the Teesta water agreement but still is hopeful of a way out based on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assurance of a deal.