Finance, commerce and science and technology adviser Salehuddin Ahmed on Tuesday asked India to expedite the disbursement of loan for the implementation of projects in the country.
He made the call when Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma paid a courtesy call on the finance adviser at the secretariat.
Officials attending the meeting said that the finance adviser also wanted New Delhi to remove barriers hampering the disbursement of the credit to projects under the Line of Credit.
Since 2010, Delhi offered around $7.3 billion loans with three LoCs, but only $1.4 billion was released until FY22.
This was the first meeting of the Indian high commissioner with the finance adviser to the interim government after ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India on August 5 in the face of students-led mass uprising.
The finance adviser while talking to reporters said the issues regarding the implementation and disbursement of the projects under the Line of Credit were discussed.
There were some issues relating to disbursement, he said without elaborating.
鈥榃e鈥檙e sorting those out,鈥� he said.
Dhaka has long been blaming the delay in approval in documentation process of projects, requirement of sourcing 75 per cent of construction materials from India, and participation of tender by only contractors from India for the slow disbursement of fund.
The finance adviser, however, called the Indian-funded projects are important for Bangladesh and the implementation of those would be continued.
He said India was a next door and a big neighbour of Bangladesh while highlighting that both the countries have many areas of economic cooperation and trade.
He said he assured the Indian high commissioner that Bangladesh is a very good place for investment and economic cooperation.
鈥楾hey (Indian side) have taken notes and will continue the cooperation鈥�, said the finance adviser.
The finance adviser said the Indian high commissioner had assured him that they would encourage more quality export of Bangladeshi products to India and that should be a win-win situation for both the countries.
The Indian side also offered support to Bangladesh in the fields of science and technology, scientific research and laboratory, added the finance adviser.
After the meeting, the Indian high commissioner said his country has not stopped any of its Line of Credit projects to Bangladesh since those are big projects.
Those projects are going on and those are basically very big projects and located at different sites. So, the contractors will be coming back to start the projects, he added.
Replying to a question on the Indian government鈥檚 engagement with the interim government of Bangladesh, the Indian high commissioner said, 鈥極ff course, we鈥檙e very closely engaging with the government鈥�.
鈥楳y meeting with the adviser is a proof of that,鈥� he added.