India’s powerful BJP minister Nadda to help Modi strengthen ties with Bangladesh

India’s Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda says he will do everything in his power to turn Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of strong relations with Bangladesh into a reality.

Nurul Islam Hasibbdnews24.com
Published : 20 Nov 2015, 07:38 PM
Updated : 20 Nov 2015, 08:42 PM

“The vision of our prime minister is to strengthen the relations with Bangladesh,” he said on Friday, speaking to bdnews24.com in an exclusive interview.
 
“Whatever best help is needed, we’ll be giving it,” said Nadda, who is seen as a member of the most powerful troika along with Modi and the ruling BJP President Amit Shah.
 
He came to Dhaka to attend meetings of the Partners in Population for Development’s (PPD) executive committee as well as of the board.
 
He is the vice-chairman of the 26-nation inter-governmental organisation PPD headquartered in Dhaka. It promotes south-south collaboration in family planning, reproductive health, population and development.
 
In the brief interview, Nadda explained the role of the PPD, India’s contribution to it, and his nation’s relations with Bangladesh.

“Basically we (in PPD) are working on three issues -- exchange of learning and training of the health workers, sharing and replicating the best practices so that we can develop common strategies and address the issues of maternal, child and adolescent healthcare”, he said.

Act locally, think globally

The Indian health minister will also attend the PPD’s inter-ministerial conference on Saturday, themed “every woman, every child, every adolescent: a south-south perspective on survive, thrive, and transform”.

Bangladesh Speaker Shirin Sharmin Choudhury will inaugurate the conference which comes at a time when the countries are switching from the MDGs to new SDGs.

Health ministers of India and Bangladesh in a bilateral meeting in Dhaka on Friday.

Nadda said the Dhaka meet would try “to fine tune the strategies which we have to adopt in the coming days”.

“We are also working on the focus of stabilisation of population and carrying family planning services at all levels”.

He said the event would help them address every woman and every child so that “world becomes healthier and fruitful contributions can be made”.

“This is only possible if we have a macro-level of strategies with a micro-level of interventions; as we said, ‘act locally, think globally’.

“Locally we have to address the issues, so that globally the parameters change”.

PM Modi’s vision

On a bilateral front, Nadda said his ministry would support Bangladesh in every possible way.

“There is a very close bondage between India and Bangladesh. The two PMs (Modi-Hasina) made the bondage ‘more closer’”.

“The PM’s (Modi) visit has really given new shape to the relationship. We have got very good cultural, social, and historical uniting factors between the countries.

“It’s our common interest to bring stability to the region, and whatever possible support is needed our PM Modi ji has assured of (giving)”.

“The vision of our PM is to strengthen the relationship with Bangladesh and I, as a health minister, will leave no stone unturned to see to it that this is converted into a reality,” he said.

India and Bangladesh signed an MoU in the health sector cooperation in 2013.

The first joint working group meeting was held in New Delhi this February, three months after Nadda assumed the post of health minister.

A lawyer turned politician, he was an MLA in Himachal Pradesh before entering the Rajya Sabha.

In Dhaka he had a bilateral meeting with his counterpart Mohammed Nasim on Friday.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s daughter Saima Wazed Hossain, Chairperson of the Bangladesh’s National Advisory Committee on Autism and Neuro-developmental Disorders, also met him at Hotel Sonargoan on Friday.

The minister said during his meeting with his counterpart they had decided to have the next joint working group meeting in Dhaka in the second week of January.

He said India would help build four medical colleges and one burn and plastic surgery institute under the new $2 billion line of credit that PM Modi announced during his Dhaka visit.

Details of those projects will be discussed in the joint working group meeting.

Nadda said they also wished to enhance the scope of training of doctors, nurses and medical professionals in India.

There will also be joint disease surveillance.

The minister said he also assured his Bangladesh counterpart of supporting the purchase of medicine, instruments and machines for community clinics as requested “since we have a robust system of procurement”.

More scholarships for PPD members

India, as an active member of the PPD, is contributing to the construction of the PPD headquarters building in Dhaka.  Bangladesh has donated a piece of land for the purpose.

India also offers 10 scholarships for citizens of PPD member states wishing to study in its institutes.

The health minister said they had decided to increase the number as demanded by the member states.

He pointed out that PPD, being a voice of south-south cooperation, “should be visible on the larger forums”.

“We should have a larger voice in international forums, an issue we are working on”.