Bhutanese King joins Independence Day celebrations today

Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wang-chuck will attend the celebration of Independence and National Day of Bangladesh Today (26 March) as the special guest.

He will pay tribute to the memory of the sacrifices of the heroic freedom fighters of Bangladesh at the National Martyrs Memorial at Savar, which will include the laying of a wreath, signing the visitors book and planting of a sapling.

Queen of Bhutan Jetsun Pema Wangchuck will also attend, accompanying the King.
Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck accorded a red carpet reception on his arrival in Dhaka on a four-day state visit to Bangladesh to attend a series of programs including Independence and National Day celebrations.

The King of Bhutan is paying a state visit to Bangladesh from March 25 to 28 at the invitation of President Mohammed Shahabuddin.

President Mohammed Shahabuddin and First Lady Rebecca Sultana received the king and his delegation upon their arrival at 10am by a special flight.

The king was given a state salute and guard of honour by a smartly turned-out contingent of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. He inspected the guard of honour, while the national anthems of the two countries were played.

After the ceremony at the airport, he headed to the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi 32 to pay tribute to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Bhutanese King went to the Prime Ministers office (PMO) on Monday afternoon to hold a delegation-level meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina welcomed the King with a bouquet.

They hold a one-to-one meeting.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh termed the visit of the King to Bangladesh asThe a testament to the close ties of friendship and goodwill that so happily exist between the two countries, said a joint statement issued on Monday.

The state visit of the King and Queen to Bangladesh has further strengthened the traditional ties of friendship, cooperation and goodwill between the two countries, it said.

The King and Queen will meet with the President of Bangladesh. The President will host a banquet today (Tuesday) in honour of the King.

Meanwhile, three MoUs were signed during the visit, both sides expressed satisfaction that the annual intake of Bhutanese students for admission in MBBS in public medical colleges of Bangladesh has been increasing gradually.

To further consolidate the existing momentum of cooperation, Bangladesh offered to increase the number of annual MBBS seats for Bhutanese students from 22 -to 30.
 
Meanwhile, Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck will also visit Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery.

The royal guest will visit Bangabhaban where he will be received by the president and his wife.

The king will have a meeting with the President at 4:30pm on Tuesday.

The President will host an iftar and a dinner reception in honour of the visiting royal.

On Wednesday morning, Queen Jetsun Pema Wangchuck and selected Bhutanese delegation members will leave Bangladesh for Bhutan by a special flight.

Bangabandhus daughter Sheikh Rehana and Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen will see them off at the airport.

The Bhutanese king will visit the Padma Bridge and the Bangladesh Special Economic Zone in Araihazar, Narayanganj.

On Thursday, the king will visit the Kurigram Special Economic Zone.

He will leave Bangladesh for Golakganj, Assam, via Sonahat land port on Thursday afternoon.

Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, State Minister for shipping, will see him off there.

However, this is the first state visit by any foreign dignitary since the formation of the new government after the January 7 national election.