DHAKA, April 3: Bangladesh registered a formal protest with India on Monday that the former has so far received much less water from Ganges than is stipulated in the 30-year water-sharing treaty with the latter.

“We have issued a protest letter to India as we are not getting our due,” said Bangladesh’s water resources minister of the government Hafizuddin Ahmed.

He said India should comply with the treaty and give Bangladesh its due share of water on the basis of the average flow in the past 40 years.

In the latest 10-day cycle of the lean season, between March 21 and 31, Bangladesh received 10,000 cusec less water than it had received in the corresponding period of 2005.

According to the source of the Joint River Commission and as measured at the Farakka barrage point, Bangladesh got only 15,700 cusec in the last 10 days of March, as against 25,309 cusec in 2005, 28,344 in 2004 and 35,127 cusec in 2003.

The water resources ministry sources say India is withdrawing Ganges water from different points upstream because of an ongoing drought, depriving Bangladesh of its due share.