Bangladesh Links India Ties to Ganga Treaty Ahead of 2026 Deadline

Dhaka has pushed for early talks on a renewed Ganga Water Sharing Treaty, saying future India-Bangladesh ties will depend on a fresh agreement that addresses Bangladesh’s water concerns and long-standing Farakka-related issues.

With the 1996 Ganga Water Sharing Treaty set to expire in December next year, water diplomacy has once again emerged as a politically sensitive issue between India and Bangladesh. Senior leaders of Bangladesh’s ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) have now publicly linked the future trajectory of bilateral ties with New Delhi to the renewal of the agreement.

Addressing a public event in Dhaka earlier this week, BNP Secretary-General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said Bangladesh expected India to begin immediate negotiations on a new treaty that reflects the “expectations and needs” of the Bangladeshi people.

Pressure Before Expiry

The current Indo-Bangladesh Ganga Water Sharing Treaty was signed in 1996 between then Indian Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda and former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The agreement created a 30-year framework for sharing dry-season water flows at the Farakka Barrage.

That treaty will expire in December 2026 unless both sides agree to renew or replace it.

Alamgir said Bangladesh wanted continuity in water-sharing arrangements but stressed that any new accord must be negotiated on terms considered fair by Dhaka. He also argued that future agreements should ideally avoid fixed expiry periods.

“The opportunity to establish good relations with India will depend on the signing of the Ganga Water Sharing Treaty,” he said during the event in the Bangladeshi capital.

Why Farakka Matters

The issue remains deeply emotional and politically charged in Bangladesh, particularly in districts dependent on the Padma River, which is the name the Ganga takes after entering Bangladesh through Chapai Nawabganj.

Bangladesh has repeatedly argued that reduced downstream water flow during the dry season has damaged agriculture, fisheries, river ecology and freshwater availability in several southern and western regions.

Water experts in Bangladesh have for years blamed the Farakka Barrage for worsening salinity intrusion and river degradation.

India, however, maintains that the barrage was primarily constructed to improve navigability at Kolkata Port by diverting water into the Hooghly River to clear accumulated silt.

According to Bangladeshi officials, nearly one-third of the country’s population depends directly or indirectly on river systems linked to transboundary water-sharing arrangements with India. Bangladesh shares 54 rivers with India, making water management a recurring diplomatic issue.

Padma Barrage Approved

The renewed political debate comes just days after Bangladesh approved a major infrastructure project on the Padma River.

Dhaka’s Executive Committee of the National Economic Council cleared the proposed Padma barrage project earlier this week. The project is expected to be completed by 2033 and is being projected by Bangladesh as a response to the “negative impact” of the Farakka Barrage.

Bangladesh Water Resources Minister Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee said the project was linked to national interest and did not require consultations with India.

At the same time, he indicated that discussions with New Delhi on broader Ganga water-sharing issues were continuing through existing channels.

The proposal has triggered debate among hydrology experts within Bangladesh itself. Some specialists cautiously welcomed the initiative, while others warned that additional barrages could worsen sediment build-up and raise riverbeds in vulnerable regions.

Teesta Issue Returns

The BNP has also revived pressure around the unresolved Teesta water-sharing agreement, another long-pending dispute between the two neighbours.

Earlier this month, BNP Information Secretary Azizul Baree Helal criticised the role of West Bengal politics in delaying the Teesta accord. He accused former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of blocking progress on the agreement.

Helal also suggested that political changes in West Bengal could create fresh momentum for negotiations between Dhaka and New Delhi.

The Teesta issue has remained unresolved for over a decade despite multiple rounds of bilateral discussions, largely because water-sharing arrangements involving Indian states require political consensus at multiple levels.

India Stresses Existing Mechanisms

India has so far maintained that all river-related matters with Bangladesh are being handled through established bilateral mechanisms.

Earlier this month, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India and Bangladesh already have structured platforms for discussing transboundary river concerns and that meetings continue at regular intervals.

Officials familiar with the matter say water-sharing negotiations are expected to gather pace over the coming months as the 2026 deadline approaches.

For both countries, the Ganga Water Sharing Treaty carries significance beyond water allocation. It has increasingly become tied to regional diplomacy, border-state politics and public sentiment on both sides of the border.

As Dhaka presses for a renewed pact, the coming year is likely to test how India and Bangladesh balance strategic ties with one of South Asia’s most sensitive river disputes.