India and Bangladesh will hold Director General (DG) level border negotiations in New Delhi from February 17–20, 2025. This is the first high-level conference since the overthrow of the Sheikh Hasina administration in August 2024, and the negotiations were postponed twice last year.
The ongoing construction of a single-row fence along the Indo-Bangladesh border, which has been opposed by Bangladesh’s Border Guard (BGB), will be a major topic. The BGB is worried that this fencing goes against earlier agreements on building within 150 yards of the border.
Increased infiltration attempts and cross-border criminal activity, including as drug and people trafficking, are anticipated to be addressed by both parties. On their side of the border, the BGB has been concentrating especially on tracking down those participating in these illicit activities.
The killing of unarmed Bangladeshi people by Indian border guards has been a sensitive topic in bilateral relations, and Bangladesh intends to put pressure on India on the matter. According to the Home Adviser for the interim administration, this needs to stop and will be a major topic of discussion.
The team from Bangladesh plans to talk about and maybe renounce what they call “uneven agreements” pertaining to border control. This covers suggestions for additional immigration inspections at certain border crossings as well as resolving border line conflicts in particular regions.
In addition to the DGs of the BGB and BSF, representatives from other border management ministries are anticipated to participate in the discussions, indicating a thorough effort to dealing with these complex problems.
