Indo-Bangla home ministers' meet on Wednesday

The home ministers of India and Bangladesh will meet here on Wednesday, during which issues like illegal immigration and anti-terror cooperation are expected to be discussed, officials said on Tuesday. Smuggling of cattle, arms and ammunition and a few other issues are also likely to be discussed during the talks between Home Minister Amit Shah and his Bangladeshi counterpart, Asaduzzaman Khan.

This will be Shah's first interaction with a foreign leader after assuming charge as the country's home minister two months ago. The home minister will hold bilateral talks with his Bangladeshi counterpart, where issues concerning both the countries will be discussed threadbare, a home ministry official said.

India is keen to sign a pact with Bangladesh for deportation of illegal immigrants in the wake of over 40 lakh people being left out of Assam's National Register of Citizens (NRC). Shah is known for his tough stand against unabated illegal immigration from Bangladesh to India.

Anti-terror cooperation, movement of illegal immigrants, smuggling of cattle, arms and ammunition and a few other issues are expected to be discussed during Shah's talks with Khan, the official said. Radicalisation of youngsters and the issue of Rohingya refugees issues might also figure during the talks, he added.

The delegation-level talks will also be attended by top internal security officials of India and Bangladesh. During the dialogue, the steps to be taken to strengthen the existing mechanism to check the movement of illegal immigrants and smuggling of cattle, narcotics and other items through the porous Indo-Bangla border will figure prominently, another official said.

India shares a 4,096-km-long border with Bangladesh.