Bangladesh and India on Tuesday launched a four-day director general-level border conference in Dhaka, focusing on curbing cross-border crimes, preventing border killings, and managing shared river resources.

The 56th edition of the talks is being held at the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) headquarters in Pilkhana. The Bangladesh delegation, led by BGB Director General Major General Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui, includes 21 members representing the BGB, the Chief Adviser’s Office, and officials from the ministries of home, foreign affairs, shipping, road transport, land survey, the Joint Rivers Commission, and the Department of Narcotics Control.

India’s 11-member delegation is headed by Border Security Force (BSF) Director General Daljit Singh Chaudhary, with senior BSF officers joined by representatives from India’s home and foreign ministries as well as the Indian High Commission in Dhaka.

According to a BGB statement, the agenda covers preventing border killings, illegal crossings, and push-ins; tackling smuggling of drugs, arms, and other contraband; halting unauthorized construction and development activities within 150 yards of the border; safeguarding riverbanks and securing Bangladesh’s fair share of transboundary river waters; implementing coordinated border management plans; and addressing tensions arising from recent anti-Bangladesh propaganda in sections of the Indian media.

The conference is scheduled to conclude on August 28, after which the Indian delegation will return home the same day.