Only diehard cynics and nay-sayers will hesitate at the idea of closer diplomatic, economic and cultural cooperation between India and Bangladesh. The case for a deeper understanding between the two neighbours in the Indian sub- continent lies not only in their proximity, commonalty of interests and socio-cultural affinity, particularly between the two Bengals, but also in strengthening their economic base through diversified exchanges in multiple spheres. Viewed in this perspective, the understanding reached between the two countries to explore the possibility of starting a luxury cruise service along the Ganga-Padma- Yamuna-Brahmaputra river system, linking Kolkata with Guwahati via Barishal and Dhaka deserves unstinted support. The bilateral agreement reached through the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) envisages a cruise service which will start from Kolkata and reach Barishal after touching Haldia on the way. From then on the vessel will navigate along the Padma to Dhaka and proceed to Dhubri in Assam thereafter. The last port of call will be Guwahati on the Brahmaputra. If everything goes well, the service, to be provided by a private cruise line, will be operational by March, 2019. The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), an arm of the Ministry of Shipping and Surface Transport, is said to be working out the details of the plan on the optimum use of river transport along the country’s 7500-km coastline in collaboration with its Bangladesh counterpart. There is a possibility of another cruise service between Chennai and Cox’s Bazar in Chittagong. The opening of an Indo-Bangladesh river route for passenger service will also complete the circle of communication since the two countries already have air, rail and road links. Transportation of goods along the river routes has started long before but optimisation of the same cannot be said to have been achieved. The proposed cruise service is expected to boost the goods transport further since it will bring in its wake an improved profile of facilities and logistics. The river route between the two Bengals had long existed until the Radcliffe Award placed them on two sides of an international border. The graphic narratives of the boat journey from Kolkata to Dhaka, Barishal and other cities of East Bengal on the banks of the mighty Padma, Meghna or Yamuna by the Bengalis on the eve of Durga Puja are some of the cherished treasures of Bengali literature till date. In that sense, the new plan is not exactly new, but a renewal of the old link and resurrection of history. Having said this, there must be a rider. Even making allowances for the fact that a sizable section of the Bengalis from East Bengal now in the West will give anything away to re-live the romance of a river cruise to their ancestral places, the cost factor and other non-cost considerations might crop up until those are addressed beforehand. The boat must set sail and god speed.
