| India today sought to pitch its ties with Sheikh Hasina-led Bangladesh on a new neighbourly high, keen to utilise the presence of a friendly government to enhance mutual benefit and trust. Facilitating Bangladesh transit facilities to Nepal and Bhutan through India will be the first concrete gesture in that direction. What New Delhi seeks, in return, is greater securing of its long, and porous borders from terrorist and insurgent elements that have frequently used Bangladeshi soil to stir ethnic and sectarian trouble in India. Foreign secretary Nirupama Rao described the three-day state visit of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as a path breaking one. The foreign secretary's statement came an hour before the Bangladesh Prime Minister landed at New Delhi's Palam Air Force base. "Bangladesh has welcomed our decision to provide it transit facilities to Nepal and Bhutan. We seek to revive those physical and emotional links which remain disrupted since Independence. We will also seek their understanding and co-operation on our security and connectivity needs," the foreign secretary stated. It isn't only Ufla militants who have used Bangladesh as a haven to wreak violence in India. Rebels from several other Northeastern states — and lately Islamist militants — have operated from there to launch strikes. There is a sense in New Delhi that the Hasina government is willing to co-operate on neutralising these elements, evidence of which may have been the recent surrender of some Ulfa leaders. Rao reaffirmed India's commitment "to provide substantial assistance to Bangladesh to become a major partner in its economic development". India has promised to assist Bangladesh in railway infrastructure, transportation, dredging, power grid interconnectivity, human resource development and investment and trade. Among the high points of Hasina's visit is likely to be a $500-million credit purse to Bangladesh. "The visit of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh promises to be a path-breaking one and gives both countries a historic opportunity to build a new and forward-looking relationship. India is committed to working with the government of Bangladesh to build on our historical and traditionally close links and open new vistas in our bilateral relations," Rao said. Hasina will stay in New Delhi's Maurya Sheraton hotel. She will meet President Pratibha Patil and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who will also host a banquet in her honour. On Tuesday, the Indira Gandhi prize for peace, disarmament and development will be conferred on Hasina at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. A business delegation from Bangladesh has accompanied Hasina to New Delhi. She is scheduled to address a business event organised by India's apex business chambers. The Bangladeshi Prime Minister is on her first visit to New Delhi after winning a landslide victory in December 2008. She will visit Ajmer on Wednesday and leave for Dhaka the same day, the foreign secretary said in her statement, confirming that Hasina will be giving Bengal a miss. In a last-minute change of plans, junior foreign minister Preneet Kaur has been designated Hasina's minister-in-waiting instead of the original choice, junior rural development minister Agatha Sangma. The reasons for the switch are not known. "We are confident that this visit would serve to underline that strong India-Bangladesh relations are vital, not just for both our countries, but for the entire region and the international community," the foreign secretary said. Khaleda warning India wants to strengthen the recent bonhomie by accommodating enough of Dhaka's concerns so that Hasina can ward off any allegations of a sell-out from the Khaleda Zia-led Opposition. "We hope to take the relationship to a higher trajectory," an official said, adding that New Delhi was willing walk the extra mile even if the Hasina administration was prevented from returning the favour by domestic compulsions. Khaleda today extended co-operation to the Bangladesh government but warned Hasina against inking any deal against the "national interest" such as a treaty to suppress Indian insurgents, PTI adds from Dhaka. "Insurgencies by different Indian ethnic groups have become closely linked to our security," the Bangladesh Nationalist Party chief said. "If she signs a treaty (to control Indian insurgents), the security of our own citizens will also be hampered." She asked Hasina to raise "issues of national interest boldly", including disputes over the border, enclaves and maritime boundary. "People do not believe the Delhi talks will be successful if such serious issues are not included…. We are dead against submissive and subservient policies," Khaleda said. The thinking in South Block is that India should play "the large-hearted elder brother" by helping Bangladesh economically. The only way to prevent Bangladesh from slipping back into the grip of fundamentalists is to help it fight poverty, many in the Indian establishment feel. However, the sources said, Dhaka appeared ready to give India a lot more than ever before, as proved by the way it stuck its neck out to hand over the Ulfa leaders. A source said: "India will continue to impress on the visiting Bangladeshi delegation to hand over Ulfa leader Anup Chetia." Bangladesh foreign minister Dipu Moni has rejected the demand. Unlike the other Ulfa leaders who were deported unofficially, Chetia was formally arrested and this, in the absence of an extradition treaty, apparently stands in the way of hand-over. Government sources played down the disputes with Bangladesh over land and maritime borders. They said of the 4,096-km-long border, only 6.1km was disputed. | ){kind=link}