<p>Bangladesh will charge fees while allowing Indian vehicles to use its territory, Muhith told reporters Monday after a meeting with Indian High Commissioner Rajeev Mitter.<br /><br />"We'll charge fees for capacity maintenance, as our infrastructure will be used by their cargoes," Muhith said a day after opposition leader Khaleda Zia told a political rally that India was seeking free transit.<br /><br />Zia, also a two-term prime minister, has demanded that the Sheikh Hasina government scrap all deals that were signed in New Delhi in January.<br /><br />Muhith said the government was working to frame new rules and fix the amount of fees to operationalise road and rail transit.<br /><br />"It will take two to three months to finalise the rules."<br /><br />The minister said the opposition's anti-transit stance is "political", The Daily Star newspaper reported.<br /><br />Zia Sunday warned the government against giving transit to Indian goods. She threatened that no foreign vehicles would be allowed to use Bangladesh territory.<br /><br />Muhith said Bangladesh has already been offering India limited transit through waterways as per the Protocol Agreement of 1972, and it receives around Tk 45 million ($639,849) in fees annually for maintenance of the routes.<br /><br />Besides, it charges conservancy and pilotage fees, which take the total earnings from water transit to around Tk 200 million ($2,843,736) a year.<br /><br />"Now we need a new set of rules for road and rail transport," said the finance minister.</p>
<p>Bangladesh will charge fees while allowing Indian vehicles to use its territory, Muhith told reporters Monday after a meeting with Indian High Commissioner Rajeev Mitter.<br /><br />"We'll charge fees for capacity maintenance, as our infrastructure will be used by their cargoes," Muhith said a day after opposition leader Khaleda Zia told a political rally that India was seeking free transit.<br /><br />Zia, also a two-term prime minister, has demanded that the Sheikh Hasina government scrap all deals that were signed in New Delhi in January.<br /><br />Muhith said the government was working to frame new rules and fix the amount of fees to operationalise road and rail transit.<br /><br />"It will take two to three months to finalise the rules."<br /><br />The minister said the opposition's anti-transit stance is "political", The Daily Star newspaper reported.<br /><br />Zia Sunday warned the government against giving transit to Indian goods. She threatened that no foreign vehicles would be allowed to use Bangladesh territory.<br /><br />Muhith said Bangladesh has already been offering India limited transit through waterways as per the Protocol Agreement of 1972, and it receives around Tk 45 million ($639,849) in fees annually for maintenance of the routes.<br /><br />Besides, it charges conservancy and pilotage fees, which take the total earnings from water transit to around Tk 200 million ($2,843,736) a year.<br /><br />"Now we need a new set of rules for road and rail transport," said the finance minister.</p>