Jul 02, 2026 12:00 pm IST

Opinion | Why India Should Be Very, Very Alarmed About China's Teesta Move In Bangladesh

China had been angling for the project for years but was thwarted by the Hasina government's caution. That's no more the case now.

Tara Kartha Tara Kartha Columnist

Tara Kartha Columnist

It looks like a done deal. Responding to questions on China providing assistance to Bangladesh on the Teesta River project, its Foreign Ministry spokesperson said, with perfect equanimity, that "China-Bangladesh cooperation does not target any third party and should be free from third-party influence". That's nice. One would like to see what Beijing's reaction would have been if the US or Japan played footsie in a project along the Mekong River or the Red river. This when China has 41 hydropower dams, two multi-purpose dams and 25 irrigation dams in its section of just one of those rivers, and still bristles even if an international bank is involved in any project in neighbouring countries. 

So, no, that lofty statement doesn't wash.

A reasonable degree of alarm was generated as Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rehman chose to visit China for his first visit abroad in this capacity. That's usually a privilege reserved for India, but times change, and processes too with it. But then came strong suspicions as the 'Joint Communique' issued during the visit declared that China will "provide support and help within its capacity to the Teesta River Comprehensive Management and Restoration Project (TRCMRP)", together with experts from Bangladesh. Beijing is no open-handed generous power. That phrase, 'within its capacity', will probably mean that it will rope in an international bank to fund the project, leaving the Bangladesh government to mull over the bills. Add to that the fact that the firm involved in the project is PowerChina, a behemoth that works in almost every Asian country and is also part of the strategic works with the People's Liberation Army, and comes directly under SASAC (State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council). That's the Chinese communist party we're talking about.

The Chinese Are There Anyway

Diplomatic positioning notwithstanding, Beijing knows very well that the project has direct security implications for India. China........

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