An ambitious Indian government plan to lay an optical fibre cable (OFC) link between Agartala and Dhaka is in the doldrums due to what an official of state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) described as "non-cooperation" by the Bangladeshi authorities.
The official, who did not wish to be named, hinted that the differences between the two countries over issues such as water sharing and transit facilities could be taking a toll on the OFC project that promised India shorter tele-connectivity with Southeast Asian countries.
"Earlier, Dhaka was enthused about the project, but it went indifferent as the Teesta water sharing issue has remained unsettled," said the official, a general manager with the BSNL in the northeast.
A few years ago, BSNL started work to lay the OFC between Agartala and Dhaka. "After preliminary work, this had to be stopped following non-cooperation from the Bangladeshi authorities," he said.
"The proposed link would provide a stable telecom link to India's landlocked northeastern states," the official told IANS.
A Kolkata-Dhaka OFC link already exists and the proposed Agartala-Dhaka line would supplement it, he said.
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"The issue of laying the OFC is being looked at by the National Advisory Council. The external affairs ministry is also in touch with the Bangladesh government to get the vital issue resolved," the official said.
He said a delegation led by the telecommunication ministry's additional secretary Rita Teaotia would soon visit Dhaka for talks on the issue.
According to the BSNL official, the OFC project has the support of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
He said India also had a plan to lay an ocean OFC to make the Cox's Bazar an international telecommunication gateway to connect India with the rest of the world through a substitute link.
"We have completed the necessary survey from Agartala to the (eastern) Bangladeshi border town of Akhaurah (12 km). The survey from Chittagong to Ashuganj in eastern Bangladesh and the entire field assessment have remained incomplete," the BSNL official said.
"The BSNL was asked by the Indian government to submit its report immediately after completion of the survey. Once the OFC is laid through Bangladesh, telecommunication between the mountainous northeast India and rest of the world would be much better," he added.
During the recent visit of President Pranab Mukherjee, the Tripura government requested him to take up appropriate action on the issue of laying the OFC through Bangladesh, a Tripura government official said.
"The Indo-Bangla OFC connectivity up to Dhaka via Krishnanagar (India) and Darshana (Bangladesh) has already been extended but no progress has been made in the Dhaka-Akhaurah-Agartala OFC linkage though it has been approved in principle by the Indian government," Tripura Information Technology, Industry and Commerce Minister Jitendra Chowdhury told IANS.
"The Indian government needs to pursue this matter with the Bangladesh government in a proactive manner to expedite the project," he added.
He also spoke about the progress between the two countries on the issue of transit facilities.
"If the Bangladesh government provides transit facilities and allows India to use its ports, roads and railways, this would immensely benefit in terms of revenue and duty," he said.
"Discontent and frustration gripped people in the northeastern region, as during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's Bangladesh visit (Sept 6-7, 2011), the talks failed to ensure transit facilities via Bangladesh for the region," the minister added.
Tripura and other northeastern states are currently connected with the rest of the country through an OFC link with Kolkata. "During natural calamities this gets disrupted due to damage to the OFC link," he added.
(Sujit Chakraborty is contactable at sujit.c@ians.in)