Bangladesh army team in India for joint exercise with the Indian Army

A team of Bangladesh army officers arrived at an army base here today to carry out a joint exercise with the Indian Army.

Sources in the army told The Telegraph that a 23-member team from the Bangladesh army, led by an army officer, arrived in Calcutta yesterday and a part of the team reached Jorhat today.

The joint exercise will include parachute jumping, small team activities and special operations using helicopters.

The main objective of the joint exercise is to establish goodwill and mutual cooperation between the armies of the two neighbouring countries.

A unit of the para commandos, a special operation unit of the Indian Army based at Rowriah, will also take part in the exercise.

The joint exercise, to be held for the first time, assumes significance as it takes place at a time when Bangladesh carried out a massive crackdown on cadres of militant outfits of the Northeast who had taken refuge in the country.

Bangladesh, in recent times, have handed over top leaders of Ulfa, National Democratic front of Boroland (NDFB) and several Manipur-based militant outfits to the Indian authorities.

The arrival of the Bangladesh team in Jorhat has been rather quiet, as the district and police administration were totally in the dark about the development. “I am not aware of such a development,” Jorhat deputy commissioner R.C. Jain said.

The Telegraph - Calcutta (Kolkata) | Northeast | Bangla army team in Jorhat