Bangladesh PM welcomes PM Modi’s disaster proposal

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Joint Disaster Management Operations proposal in South Asia was welcomed by Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was in India for a few hours on August 19 to attend the cremation of Suvra Mukherjee, the wife of Indian President Pranab Mukherjee. She also met India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj before meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This was the second meeting between the leaders of both countries since June.

The meeting between both PM Modi and PM Hasina lasted for nearly half an hour. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed idea of joint exercises between both countries is significant as South Asia is one of the world’s poorest areas and also vulnerable to natural disasters. The 2013 flash floods in Uttarakhand and the 2014 floods in Jammu & Kashmir, both in India, caused by torrential rainfall are just the recent examples. The earthquake in Nepal this year that killed over 9,000 people is also a case in point. PM Modi had suggested the launch of a SAARC satellite in 2014 to assist in weather forecasting, along with setting up education and telemedicine networks among South Asian countries.

Mr Modi told his Bangladeshi counterpart that the National Disaster Management Authority of India would like to step up cooperation with agencies responsible for responding to natural calamities in Bangladesh and other South Asian nations. The personnel of the National Disaster Response Force of India and similar agencies of other South Asian nations could also share best practices in dealing with natural calamities and hold a joint exercise, said PM Modi. Extending support to the proposals PM Hasina said that his proposals were very relevant as South Asian nations were all prone to natural calamities.

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