Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday met Indian foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla for over one hour and 15 minutes at her official residence Gono Bhaban in Dhaka.

The meeting stood out as it was the first time that the 74-year-old Prime Minister met a foreigner since the coronavirus pandemic broke out.

As the Indian foreign secretary’s visit was finalised at the last moment, the meeting was not in Hasina’s official schedule, who has been maintaining strict social distancing norms in view of her advanced age. There was no official release from the Prime Minister’s office confirming the meeting.

A source aware of the developments in Gono Bhaban confirmed that Hasina met Shringla, who reached Dhaka on a sudden visit on Tuesday evening.

“Yes, they met and the meeting went on for over 75 minutes…. The Prime Minister was happy that her Indian counterpart sent someone to meet her. The visit is a very positive development in the context of India-Bangladesh relations,” said the source.

The Indian high commission in Dhaka also later confirmed the meeting.

According to the source, Hasina expressed happiness over India’s recent gesture of gifting 10 locomotive engines to Bangladesh.

Shringla’s visit was finalised barely 24 hours before the special Indian Air Force flight touched down in Dhaka.

In a brief statement, the Indian high commission in Dhaka said that Shringla was in the Bangladesh capital “to discuss and take forward co-operation on matters of mutual interest”.

The Bangladesh side was, however, silent on the visit till Tuesday evening.

A source in Dhaka said that the Bangladesh ministry of foreign affairs would issue a formal release on the visit after the bilateral talks between Shringla and his counterpart Masud Bin Momen.

Indian foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla. File picture

The bilateral talks scheduled for Wednesday are likely to focus on resuming discussions — via video for the time being — on pending bilateral issues like water-sharing and India-funded projects in Bangladesh and get them going without any delay. The talks will also revolve around security issues and creating a travel bubble to facilitate business and medical travel.

The initiative to reach out to Dhaka even during the pandemic signals a diplomatic emergency, said a source, referring to some of the recent developments in Bangladesh.

Over the past few months, there have been concerns in the Indian foreign policy establishment that China is expanding its footprints in Bangladesh and that the continuation of the trend may change the geopolitics in South Asia.

South Block has also been worried over Islamabad’s attempts — captured in Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan calling up Hasina to discuss a variety of issues, ranging from the pandemic to floods — to ensure a thaw in its relationship with Dhaka.

“No one knows what transpired between the Prime Minister and the foreign secretary behind the closed doors, but there is little doubt that Shringla must have conveyed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s message that India considers Bangladesh as its closest friend and expects a reciprocal gesture,” said a source on the Indian side.

The fact that Hasina is aware of the Indian concerns and has started acting accordingly is clear with the Bangladesh government’s decision to press a pause button on its earlier plan of allowing China to conduct the last-stage trial of a coronavirus vaccine on its population, said a source.

“It’s almost certain that Shringla must have conveyed that India would extend all support to Bangladesh in dealing with the pandemic,” the source added.

If the discussions veered around Chinese vaccine, Shringla, in all likelihood, had taken the opportunity to convey to Hasina about Delhi’s reservations with Dhaka’s plan to hand over the extension and upgrade of Sylhet airport to a Chinese company.

“Sylhet is close to India’s Northeast and there are major security concerns if the project is given to a Chinese firm,” said a source.

South Block is also uncomfortable with Dhaka’s decision to seek a $1-billion Chinese assistance for the Teesta river comprehensive management and restoration project as India also shares water from the river.

“As sharing of the Teesta water is a long-pending issue, any mention of it by Hasina must have given Shringla a chance to flag India’s concerns,” the source added.