Bangladesh Water Resource Minister meets Dr Singh

New Delhi, Mar 20 : Bangladesh Water Resource Minister Ramesh Chandra Sen called on Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and discussed issues of mutual concern, including the sharing of water of Teesta river.

The Teesta River is among several rivers flowing from the Himalayas into Bangladesh, providing a lifeline to both farming and ecology in both countries.

Sen also held discussions with his Indian counterpart Pawan Kumar Bansal in a bid to narrow down the differences over the sharing of Teesta waters on the last day of ministerial-level Joint River Commission (JRC) talks.

Dhaka is pressing for an interim accord on Teesta water sharing during the lean season, while New Delhi is willing to go only for a joint hydrological survey to assess the availability of water in the river round the year before accepting such an agreement.

The two ministers were to sign on the minutes of the JRC meeting, the first in five years, but as per reports the two sides have failed to agree on a joint statement.