India's Modi stresses on connectivity among Bay of Bengal countries

Sri Lanka's foreign affairs minister Gamini Lakshman Peiris (left) listens to a virtual speech by India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the fifth Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) leader's summit in Colombo on March 30, 2022. - AFP

NEW DELHI (Xinhua): Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday (March 30) that the countries surrounding the Bay of Bengal should expedite initiatives for connectivity.

He made the remarks while virtually participating in the fifth "Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Summit, which was hosted by Sri Lanka, and comprises Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Laying stress on road connectivity among BIMSTEC nations, Modi noted the need to evolve a legal framework for setting up a "coastal shipping ecosystem" in the Bay of Bengal.

India is ready to contribute US$3 million to activate the BIMSTEC Centre for Weather and Climate for enhancing cooperation in disaster management, particularly disaster risk reduction, he said.

India recently hosted the third BIMSTEC Disaster Management Exercise, Modi said, adding that such exercises should be carried out more frequently to strengthen the institutional mechanism among officials of BIMSTEC countries in the event of a disaster.