Dhaka, Aug 17: Bangladesh has said it would explore bilateral routes to make the Indian government rethink its proposed river-linking project before appealing to international agencies. "Bangladesh will make every effort to settle the issue bilaterally. If these efforts fail, we will consider international measures," Water Resources Minister Major (Retd) Hafizuddin Ahmed told the 'New Age' daily.
Dhaka says the Indian project would deprive the lower riparian country of water and spell environmental and economic disaster for it.
On Wednesday, the Bangladesh foreign ministry handed over a note to Indian High Commissioner Dilip Sinha lodging an official protest.
Earlier, Dhaka had threatened to approach international bodies over the project. However, a minister said taking its reservations over the river-linking project to the United Nations were unlikely to yield results.
He said India would be requested to consider an alternative project to tackle its water scarcity without harming Bangladesh. Only if Bangladesh fails to convince India will it take up the matter with international financial institutions, donors and the world community, the minister said. Bureau Report