After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, India’s relations with Bangladesh have been strained. So it was expected that the neighboring country would not increase foreign aid to Bangladesh. That is what happened. However, it will not have much impact on Bangladesh. Because India has kept its foreign aid policy to Bangladesh the same.
Although the amount of aid for various countries has been reduced in the budget of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs for the fiscal year 2025-26, the allocation for Bangladesh has been kept unchanged. The country has allocated Rs 5,483 crore for the foreign aid sector in the next fiscal year, which was Rs 5,806 crore in the current fiscal year.
The Indian media outlet Indian Express says that Rs 120 crore has been allocated for Bangladesh in the next fiscal year. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs had allocated the same amount of money in the current fiscal year as well.
The newspaper wrote, ‘Despite the deterioration of bilateral relations after Sheikh Hasina was ousted, no change has been made in the allocation for Bangladesh.’
On Saturday, India’s Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the national budget in Parliament (Lok Sabha). The country’s fiscal year begins on April 1. It ends on March 31.
This is the first budget of the Narendra Modi government, which came to power for a third term through the 2024 elections.
New Delhi allocates funds for foreign aid through the Ministry of External Affairs. The total allocation for the Ministry of External Affairs in the new fiscal year is Rs 20,516 crore.
The Indian Express wrote that India had allocated more for Bangladesh in the fiscal year 2023-24. Their allocation for Dhaka was Rs 137 crore.
India has allocated the highest allocation for Nepal this time too. The Modi government will provide the country with Rs 2,150 crore for hydropower projects, economic ‘cooperation’ and various infrastructure construction. It has provided Rs 2,68 crore in the current fiscal year.
The allocation has also been increased for the Maldives, which is trying to improve relations with India. The allocation for the country in the next fiscal year has been increased by Rs 130 crore to Rs 600 crore.
The allocation has been reduced for Afghanistan. The country’s allocation has been reduced from Rs 200 crore to Rs 100 crore. Two years ago, the allocation for the country was Rs 207 crore.
The Indian Express says that India has been very cautious in improving relations with Afghanistan since the Taliban government came to power.
The Indian government has also reduced the allocation for Myanmar. The Indian Express has reported that the allocation has been reduced by Rs 50 crore to Rs 350 crore due to the country’s ongoing political instability.
An allocation of Rs 300 crore has been kept for Sri Lanka, which is overcoming an economic crisis.
The Indian Express says that the allocation for Africa has been increased by Rs 25 crore in an attempt to “increase its dominance”. India will spend Rs 225 crore in the countries of the region in the next fiscal year.
Apart from this, the Indian Ministry of Finance has reduced the allocation for Latin American countries from Rs 90 crore to Rs 60 crore.
