Rajnath called on Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in Dhaka on Saturday. (PTI)

NEW DELHI: Union home minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday praised the Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh for its constructive cooperation in tackling terrorism and also offered to send further relief material and supplies to help the neighbour deal with needs of displaced Rohingyas living there.

Sources said the “humanitarian” aid to Bangladesh to maintain camps housing Rohingya Muslims displaced from Rakhine province of Myanmar, is part of a larger and long-term plan to ensure their deportation to Myanmar and resettlement in Rakhine. India is helping with food supplies, relief material and medical care to displaced Rohingya living in camps across Bangladesh, to ensure that they are contained there and do not cross over to Indian territory.

India is simultaneously working on a project to construct pre-fabricated housing in Rakhine, Myanmar, to ensure the displaced Rohingya living in India as well as Bangladesh are properly resettled post-deportation. “While the aid to Bangladesh to deal with Rohingya influx has a humanitarian angle, India is also working the diplomatic channels with Myanmar to ensure it takes back the Rohingya. Once the deportation plan is amicably worked out with Myanmar, the Rohingya can be resettled in Rakhine, with the pre-fabricated houses being constructed as part of an Indian project offering them proper living conditions,” said an government functionary.

Singh, who met Hasina as part of his engagements during the Bangladesh visit, also discussed counter-terror and counter-radicalisation cooperation. The two leaders agreed all countries in the region afflicted by this menace should join hands to tackle it. While no names were taken, the reference was obviously to Pakistan. Sources said suggestions were made during the discussions that if Islamabad was unable to tackle terrorism on its own, New Delhi and Dhaka were more than willing to help.

Singh also congratulated Hasina for the “excellent growth” of the country’s economy, at 7.78%, under her leadership.

