Indian External Affairs Minister 1 K Gujral has been categorical about reaching an accord with Bangladesh on sharing tlie Ga nges water before the next lean season The Indian minister's affirmation that he is fully alive to Bangladesh's concern and also endorses its position on the matter is quite reassuring. To quote him, ‘ India is determined to solve the water issue. We will not let you down." One only understands* from this that Bangladesh's requirement for waiter will be met.

What is even more reassuring 1;* the fact that the-bilateral efforts for a solution to the water problem have the backing of political will from both sides. It is exactly at this point that we ha ve reasons to be optimistic about early and satisfactory resolution of this outstanding problem. Notw. thstanding our optimism we would like to point out that ‘much work remains to be done before an accord is signed. After all, the technical and finer details will be worked out at the level of experts. Past experiences show that an agreement gets stalled when lengthy debates ensue over technical details.

Let us hope that the congenial environment created by the political will demonstrated at a high level on both sides will have a positive bearing on the work at the disposal of the experts now. This should, as a matter of fact, help overcome any stumbling-block faced while sorting out the nitty-gritties. 4

Of major significance is the Indian coalition governments attitude towards its neighbours. We notice with pleasure a major shift — obviously for the better — in Indian attitude, particularly in case of Bangladesh. We. in Bangladesh, appreciate the new spirit amply manifest through the exchange of good-will visits between high officials and ministers of the two countries. Now the need is to’pursue the spirit to Its logical end. The new-found attitude of understanding and co-operation has to be tended further to take Indo-Bangla relations on to a higher plane.