Dhaka, March 30 : Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam, MP, on Wednesday called upon the civil society, think tank, researchers, academicians of both the countries to play constructive roles in promoting the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and India. He made this remark as Chief Guest at a seminar titled ‘Bangladesh-India relations: Confluence of Ideologies and Evolving Perspectives,’ organised by the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS). Chairman of BIISS, Ambassador Kazi Imtiaz Hossain chaired the session, while Director General BIISS Major General Mohammad Maksudur Rahman, OSP, BSP, psc, Director of Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) Arvind Gupta, Senior Fellow of VIF Sreeradha Datta, Chairman of Bangladesh Foundation for Regional Studies (BFRS) ASM Shamsul Arefin and Research Director, BIISS Mahfuz Kabir spoke in the seminar. Shahriar Alam, in his remarks, said that over the years, the mutual respect for independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and strong political goodwill of both the countries contributed substantially to blossoming this friendship. He said while Bangladesh and India are celebrating the 50th anniversary of establishment of Bangladesh-India diplomatic ties, the relationship has showcased the breadth and depth of this very que relationship which has not only been forged in blood but has also been tested at times in the last 50 years. The State Minister expressed satisfaction on the joint celebrations of yearlong programmes like observing Maitri Dibosh (Friendship Day) in the 20 cities across the globe, on 6 December 2021, arranging Bangabandhu-Bapu Digital Exhibition, unveiling postage stamps, exchange of visit of war veterans. He urged the civil society of both countries to play its due role in projecting achievements of our relations and showcase the relationship as “Role Model” for neighborhood diplomacy. He said that think tanks, academicians, social scientists should try to counter the propaganda and fabricated motivated publicity especially in the social media platforms through constructive write-ups and articles. A book entitled, ‘India-Bangladesh Bonhomie at 50: 1971 and the present’ edited by Senior Fellow of VIF Ms. Sreeradha Datta was launched by the Chief Guest and other speakers of Seminar. Earlier, at the State Guest House Padma in the afternoon, Shahriar Alam met a high level delegation of the reputed New Delhi based institution Vivekananda International Foundation which is famous for quality research and in-depth studies. While expressing satisfaction on the excellent bilateral relations and exchange of high level visits, he emphasized on exchange of thoughts, joint publications among the reputed think tanks between the two countries. Director of VIF Mr. Arvind Gupta, Senior Fellow of VIF Ms. Sreeradha Datta and Chairman of Bangladesh Foundation for Regional Studies (BFRS) Mr. A. S. M. Shamsul Arefin were present during the meeting. MAZ RJ