State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam said on Thursday that discussions concerning the renewal of the Bangladesh-India Ganges Water Treaty are progressing constructively.

Speaking to reporters on the matter, she remarked, "I think it is moving in a positive direction. I hope India will understand its importance and come forward accordingly."

The 30-year treaty, signed on December 12, 1996, is set to expire in December of this year, making its renewal a pivotal test for bilateral ties as the two nations navigate an arrangement to share the waters in an equitable and climate-proof manner.

Bangladesh and India currently share 54 common rivers, with their bilateral cooperation managed through the Joint Rivers Commission.

Experts note that if the agreement expires without a renewed framework, Bangladesh's agricultural output and food availability could suffer severe setbacks, alongside a substantial increase in climate vulnerability.

Highlighting the complex realities of the current climate and hydrological landscape, former Bangladesh High Commissioner to India and former Ambassador to the USA Tariq A. Karim observed at a recent seminar that while the original 1996 treaty proved cooperation is viable on sensitive matters, its upcoming December 2026 expiration will test the region's adaptability.

Emphasizing that vital resources like water, food, energy, health, disaster management and climate resilience are regional public goods that no single nation can secure independently, he asserted that ecological integrity forms South Asia's strongest rationale for continued collaboration.

He suggested that the region pursue shared river-basin management, joint research, early-warning mechanisms, climate adaptation financing, and a regional ecological security dialogue.

"Such cooperation would not require states to surrender sovereignty. It would require them to recognise that sovereignty in an age of climate stress is strengthened - not weakened - by cooperation achieved through its pooling," Karim explained.

Echoing this multi-disciplinary approach, international affairs expert Prof. Shahab Enam Khan recently told a media that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs must undertake extensive preparation where data sharing remains paramount.

He stressed that because conditions in 2026 differ vastly from 1996, the renewal cannot be viewed solely through engineering or diplomatic lenses and must instead comprehensively engage economists, urban planners, sociologists, and environmentalists in the planning process as Dhaka bears the shared risk of inadequate water allocation.

With Inputs from UNB