DHAKA, Dec 19: A three-day international conference on regional cooperation on trans boundary rivers ended in Dhaka on Sunday with a call to India to 'dispel mistrust and concerns' over its river-linking project and to follow a 'no harm to either party policy'.

The conference, which featured about 500 local and international water and development experts, and environment activists, also urged New Delhi to scrap the river-linking project and decommission the Farakka Barrage.

The Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka, Veena Sikri, said her country would undertake a detailed consultative process with all concerned, including Bangladesh, when its planned river-linking project goes 'beyond the conceptual stage'.

"It is the declared policy of the Indian government to undertake a detailed consultative process with all concerned," she said. "Bangladesh will never do any harm or resort to any activities which may cause any harm to any neighbour, particularly hampering the interest of the people of the South Asian countries," said the Minister for Cooperatives, Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, who was chief guest at the concluding session.

"At the same time, we expect that other countries will do the same. I hope no step, regarding water issues, will be taken without consulting us." Bangladesh, he said, was always in favour of creating an enabling environment so that all the co-riparian countries could join hands together to harness the water resources of the region for a win-win scenario for all.

"Problems regarding sharing of water can be solved through mutual discussion at the Joint River Commission level," he further said. The Minister for Environment and Forest, Tariqul Islam, hoped that no country would take a unilateral initiative to control the trans-boundary rivers. "Effective initiative should be taken to ensure proper utilization of water resources."

Motia Chowdhury, a former minister for agriculture, said disputes regarding water sharing of the common rivers should be resolve by 'sincere and cordial' dialogue among the concerned countries. "We want to see implementation of 'no harm' policy in managing water resources of the region," she said.

Urging the countries concerned to take 'political decision' to protect rivers, she said: "None should use the trans-boundary river issue as a political weapon." Referring to ongoing debate that covers water resources issues, including intense flooding, inadequate flow of water during the lean season, the phenomenon of desertification and increased salinity, and the construction of embankments, Ms Sikri said it was unfortunate that almost invariably India was blamed for each of the problems.

"This tends to create a mind set that is one sided, in that it precludes a free and open dialogue." Prof Jamilur Reza Chowdhury, Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the conference, presided over the concluding session, also addressed by Prof Nazrul Islam of the Bangladesh Environment Network, an organization of the expatriate Bangladeshi experts, and Quazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmed.

Nazrul recommended that the river linking project be scrapped, the Farakka Barrage be decommissioned and commercial approach to rivers be abandoned. The recommendations of the conference, attended also by Medha Patkar and Rameswami R. Iyer and George Verghese of India, include ensuring water-based cooperation and basin-wise management to realize the large potential benefits from the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna trans-boundary river systems and ensuring access to data and information concerning any intervention in any trans-boundary river in any country.

The conference also suggested that water resources of all trans-boundary rivers should be recognized as common resources of all co-riparian countries and to emphasize the ecological approach to river management.