New Delhi: Over fours years after an agreement was signed between India and Bangladesh during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the country, the state-owned channel Bangladesh TV (BTV World) has begun broadcasting in India through Doordarshan.

Since September 2, the channel has begun its distribution through DD’s DTH platform – DD Free Dish. Free Dish reaches as many as 35 million households in India.

News reports in Dhaka quoting cabinet secretary Shafiul Alam said the matter was discussed in a cabinet meeting chaired by prime minister Sheikh Hasina at the Bangladesh Secretariat on September 2.

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Dhaka Tribune, quoting Alam, said the formal transmission of BTV programmes in India was “in line with the agreement signed between Bangladesh and India during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Bangladesh on June 6-7, 2015.”

However, till June, there was not much move on the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries. On June 21, Indian information and broadcasting minister Prakash Javdekar announced that BTV would soon be made available in India and Doordarshan, in return, would be broadcast in Bangladesh through BTV.

Javdekar reportedly said, “The decision marks an important milestone in strengthening ties between the two countries and follows an earlier decision taken by the two governments to co-produce a film on Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, which will be directed by eminent filmmaker Shyam Benegal.”

He said the channel would have a lot of takers in eastern India.

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