Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has sent 1,200 kg (30 maunds) of Rangpur's famous Haribhanga mangoes as a gift to Mamata Banerjee, chief minister of India's West Bengal. Representatives of both countries believe the gift will strengthen friendship and goodwill.

The gift mangoes were sent to India's Petrapole port at around 12 noon on Monday, 12 June, after Benapole port and customs formalities. Kawsar Sarwar, administrative officer (accounts) of the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata, handed the mango packets to Indian representatives. The mangoes had arrived at Benapole land port by road at 10am.

Tanvir Ahmed, deputy commissioner of Benapole Custom House, told Jago News that the gift mangoes had been sent to Kolkata through Benapole port on behalf of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Kawsar Sarwar said the Bangladesh prime minister had given the mangoes as a gift to the chief minister of India's West Bengal state. As a token of the golden chapter in bilateral relations between Bangladesh and India, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had, as always, sent mangoes as a goodwill gift to the chief minister in Kolkata, Mamata Banerjee. "We hope this will strengthen relations between the people of the two countries," he said.

Last year too, the prime minister sent a truckload of Rangpur's famous Haribhanga mangoes to West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.