High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh Pranay Verma has said Bangladesh, as one of India’s closest development partner, occupies an important place in the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme.

He described the unveiling of the Suborno Jayanti Scholarship this year as an example, where Bangladesh is recipient of 500 dedicated slots for ITEC every year, in addition to several tailor-made programmes for civil servants organised as per the requirement of Government of Bangladesh.

The High Commissioner said the ITEC alumni in Bangladesh showcased the strong bonds of friendship between India and Bangladesh.

The High Commission of India, Dhaka hosted a reception-cum-get together on Thursday evening to celebrate the 58th ITEC Day at the the Institution of Diploma Engineers Bangladesh (IDEB).

Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Huq attended the occasion as the chief guest.

ITEC, a flagship programme of the government of India, was instituted in 1964 as part of India’s Development Assistance Programme.

It has been offering the benefit of India’s development experience and appropriate technologies to more than 160 countries across the globe.

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Every year, more than 10,000 training slots are offered to ITEC partner countries for training courses in various areas like Accounts, Audit, Good Governance Practices, Management, SME, Rural Development, Public Health, Parliamentary Affairs, Judiciary, Election Management, IT, Data Analytics, Remote Sensing, Renewable Energy etc. in premier Indian Institutes.

Bangladesh is the foremost and valued partner under the ITEC cooperation, said the Indian High Commission in Dhaka.

The enthusiasm could not be dampened even by COVID pandemic in 2020-21, when a number of courses were organized virtually under e-ITEC.

More than 4,500 young Bangladeshi professionals have undergone such specialized short and medium term courses in India under the ITEC programme.

These training programmes provide opportunities to share best Indian practices with the brightest minds in Bangladesh.

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As a result, India has been an equal beneficiary, learning especially from the developmental experiences of Bangladesh which is making phenomenal strides both in Economic and Social development, said the High Commission.

Around 250 ITEC alumni from all walks of life, besides guests, attended the ITEC Day event.

Few among the distinguished alumni also shared their experiences of their training in India.

A small cultural event – jugalbandi of bhartanatyam and kathak dances – culminated the programme.