Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday afternoon left for New Delhi on a two-day state visit at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the first such bilateral visit by any head of government after the BJP-led NDA alliance formed a government for the third consecutive time.
A Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight carrying the prime minister departed from the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport Friday afternoon, the Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the national news agency, reported.
During the visit, both the premiers will hold a one-to-one meeting followed by delegation-level talks, and Dhaka and New Delhi will sign several agreements and MoUs to strengthen the existing bilateral ties further, it said.
Additionally, discussions on a potential trade pact are expected. Over the past decade, numerous cross-border initiatives have been launched as part of a robust regional partnership plan, the news agency reported.
This visit will be Sheikh Hasina's second trip to the Indian capital in less than 15 days, as she was among the dignitaries invited to Modi's swearing-in ceremony on June 9.
On Friday evening, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar will call on the prime minister.
On Saturday morning, a red carpet will be rolled out at Rashtrapati Bhavan to receive Prime Minister Hasina by her Indian counterpart through a ceremonial reception where the national anthems of the two countries will be played. She will also inspect the Guard of Honour there.
Hasina will have a one-to-one meeting with Prime Minister Modi followed by delegation-level talks, the report said.
Both will witness the signing ceremony of the MoUs and agreements. After that, both the prime ministers will give their press statements. Then they will attend a Banquet Luncheon hosted by Prime Minister Modi in her honour at Hyderabad House.
In the afternoon, Prime Minister Hasina will call on Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar at his Secretariat.
In the evening, she will call on President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan before returning to Dhaka.
Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.
