Published : 22 Oct 2025, 04:40 AM
Updated : 21 Aug 2026, 02:37 PM
Foreign Advisor Touhid Hossain has said the report of 10 India-Bangladesh projects being cancelled, as given by Local Government Advisor Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain, is not “entirely correct”.
On Tuesday, at a press conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Touhid said only one deal listed had actually been cancelled.
He added that several projects and deals in the list do not even exist.
Touhid said, “The list that has been circulating was shared by an individual and apparently retweeted by an advisor along with comments. I don’t wish to comment on those comments; perhaps it would have been better if they hadn’t done so.”
“The only contract I am aware of that has been cancelled is the one with Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE). This is an old deal and was signed a long time ago,” he added.
In July 2024, Bangladesh signed a contract to purchase a seagoing tugboat from India's state-owned GRSE for $21 million. This purchase was to be made under an Indian defense loan agreement amounting to $500 million.
Indian media reported the cancellation in May this year, citing information from the National Stock Exchange of India.
On the remaining deals and projects listed by Asif Mahmud, Touhid said: “Some exist at different stages, but not under the exact names. Some have alternative descriptions.”
Asif had posted the list of ten supposedly cancelled India-Bangladesh projects on his Facebook page on Sunday night.
The post read: “Ten contracts with India cancelled during Hasina government, others under consideration.
“Discussion on the contracts began after the interim government took office, and proper review led to this decision,” it added.
The post also included the names, signing year and type of decision for each contract or project.
In his list, Asif mentioned several Bangladesh-India projects, including the Tripura-Chattogram rail link, Abhaypur-Akhaura railway line expansion, Ashuganj-Agartala corridor, Feni River water management project, road and waterway development linked to port use, Bangladesh’s financial cooperation proposals for Farakka-related projects, Sylhet-Silchar rail link, petroleum pipeline expansion, Indian Economic Zones (Mirsarai and Mongla IEZ), and a tugboat agreement with Indian defence firm GRSE.
His photocard also lists the Kushiyara River water sharing project as “suspended”.
In addition, he noted the “reconsideration” of the electricity import agreement with Adani Power and the “renewal or reconsideration” of the Ganges water sharing agreement.
Asif's information says that the Teesta River water-sharing treaty, previously in draft form, is now “under discussion for implementation”.
Touhid reviewed Asif’s list on Tuesday and clarified the status of each project.
He said: “The ‘Tripura-Chattogram rail link’ does not exist. The ‘Abhaypur-Akhaura rail expansion’ does not exist. The ‘Ashuganj-Agartala corridor’ under that name does not exist. The actual ongoing project is ‘Ashuganj River Port-Sarail-Dharkhar-Akhaura Land Port’, and one package of it has been cancelled.”
On the Feni River water management project, the advisor said: “An MoU exists from a previous government: ‘MoU on withdrawal of 1.82 cusecs of water from Feni River by India for the drinking water supply scheme for Sabroom town, Tripura.’ It is still in effect and has not been scrapped.”
About the Kushiara River water distribution project, he said: “There is no project under that name. The MoU signed in 2022 between Bangladesh and India for water withdrawal from the common-border river Kushiara remains pending, not cancelled.”
Concerning the issue of port usage, Touhid said the “Agreement on the use of Chattogram and Mongla Ports for the movement of goods to and from India between Bangladesh and India” does not exist.
“This agreement has not been scrapped,” he added.
He also said there is no project related to Bangladesh’s financial assistance withdrawal from the Farakka Barrage, nor does the “Sylhet-Silchar connectivity project” exist.
As for the petroleum pipeline expansion, he clarified that while there is an existing pipeline from Numaligarh to Parbatipur, discussions for its expansion took place at one point, but no agreement has been signed.
Touhid also addressed the status of Indian economic zone projects in Mirersarai and Mongla, which were mentioned as "scrapped" by Asif.
He clarified that the process of cancellation is “still ongoing” for these projects.
Regarding the Adani Power electricity import deal, which Advisor Asif claimed was cancelled, Touhid confirmed that the information is "mostly correct”.
He explained, “Discussions with Adani Power are still ongoing, as you all know. There have been many news reports on this. The discussions are aimed at either revisiting or reframing the agreement. It is an ongoing process. No final decision has been made to cancel the agreement.”
On the Ganges and Teesta water-sharing agreements, he said: “The Ganga treaty will expire next year; renewal discussions are ongoing. The Teesta draft agreement has not been signed, and no formal agreement exists yet.”
Touhid confirmed the GRSE tag boat contract cancellation. “We cancelled it after reviewing and finding it not beneficial for Bangladesh,” he said.
Asked if the sharing of “inaccurate” information by an advisor reflects government coordination issues, Touhid declined to comment.
He also did not respond to whether there will be any “future request” to prevent such statements from official positions.
On Indian projects currently running in Bangladesh, Touhid said: “Most projects were initially suspended due to security or other concerns. Some have since resumed. I cannot provide detailed information.
“Some projects are ongoing, some are not, and some are progressing slowly,” he added.
