Indian minister Jaishankar arrives in Dhaka 

Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has arrived in Dhaka in the morning today on an official visit ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the country on 26-27 March to attend the golden jubilee celebrations of Bangladesh's independence.

Jaishankar landed Dhaka around 10 am in a chartered flight.

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen welcome the Indian minister at the Bangabandhu Airforce Base in the capital.

During the visit, the External Affairs Minister will hold bilateral talks with Foreign Minister Dr Momen and also call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

The visit follows on the PM-level Virtual Summit held between two countries on 17 December, 2020 and will also provide an opportunity to take stock of the progress in bilateral relations. 

Bangladesh looks forward to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit this month to advance the bilateral relations with some deliverables, said State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam on Tuesday.

The bilateral talks between Momen and Jaishankar will be held at State guesthouse Padma from 11:30am to 12:30pm. They are likely to brief media jointly after the talks.

The Foreign Minister will host lunch in honor of his Indian counterpart at a city hotel.

Modi's planned visit to Bangladesh on 26-27 March will be his first trip abroad in more than a year, mainly because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bangladesh is set to celebrate the 50th anniversary of independence and 50 years of Bangladesh-India diplomatic relations this year.

The State Minister highlighted the deepness of the relations between Bangladesh and India, and mentioned that Bangladesh will host some important events from March 17-26.

A passenger train is likely to be made operational between Dhaka and New Jalpaiguri of India on 26 March as part of the celebrations of the Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh's independence.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi are expected to flag off the train service.

The two leaders held a Summit in virtual format on 17 December last year and had comprehensive discussions on all aspects of bilateral relations, and exchanged views on regional and international issues.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina thanked her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi for accepting her invitation to visit Bangladesh in person in March 2021 to join the celebrations on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh's Independence and 50 years of Bangladesh-India diplomatic relations.