Bangladesh on Wednesday signed a whopping $4.5 billion third line of credit (loC) agreement with India for its infrastructure and social sector development with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley pledging to back the country's development initiatives. The agreement was signed in the presence of Finance Minister Jaitley and his Bangladeshi counterpart AMA Muhith after the two leaders held talks here.
“Bangladesh has developed significantly on the socioeconomic front in the past seven years,” Jaitley said following the signing of the deal. “We have stood by Bangladesh’s attempts to develop and we will do so in the future. This significant agreement is a continuation of that effort,” he said. Speaking on the occasion, Muhith said, "Bangladesh and India have excellent relations at the moment.”
“They stood by us during our independence. We hope they will continue to do so in the future,” Muhith said. The $4.5bn loC was announced during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to India in April. Economic Relations Division Secretary Kazi Shofiqul Azam signed the deal on behalf of Bangladesh, while MD of the Export-Import Bank of India (Exim) David Rasquinha signed for India.