Bhutanese PM Tshering Tobgay arrives in Dhaka for two-day visit

Dhaka: Bangladesh on Saturday rolled out a red carpet for Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, who arrived in Dhaka this morning for a two-day state visit.

Bangladesh's Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus received him after a Drukair flight carrying the Bhutanese leader landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) around 8:15 am (Local time).

The two leaders held a brief meeting at the airport's VIP lounge, where Prime Minister Tobgay inquired about the damage and loss of lives caused by Friday's earthquake and expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.

Following the meeting, Tobgay was escorted to a makeshift saluting dais, where he was accorded a 19-gun salute and a guard of honour.

After the airport ceremony, the Bhutanese Prime Minister departed for the National Martyrs' Memorial in Savar to pay homage to the martyrs of Bangladesh's Liberation War.

He will lay a wreath at the memorial's altar and sign the visitors' book.

Bangladesh's foreign adviser and commerce adviser are expected to meet the Bhutanese leader in the afternoon before he holds a tete-a-tete with Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus at his office in the Tejgaon area around 3:00 pm.

Prime Minister Tobgay will also attend an official banquet in his honour in the evening.