Indian Foreign Secretary’s Nepal visit concludes

Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri today paid a courtesy call on Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers in Singha Durbar, Kathmandu, on the concluding day of his two-day official visit to Nepal.

During the meeting, Foreign Secretary Misri conveyed greetings from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussed the progress of bilateral cooperation and possible outcomes of Prime Minister Shah’s upcoming visit to India.

Prime Minister Shah expressed gratitude for India’s swift assistance as a first responder following the devastating Rasuwa-Bhotekoshi floods, including the provision of relief materials and deployment of rescue teams. He also appreciated Prime Minister Modi’s solidarity and assurance of support during the disaster. Mr Shah expressed interest in exploring cooperation with India for the development of sports in Nepal.

Foreign Secretary Misri conveyed Prime Minister Modi’s message that preparations for Prime Minister Shah’s upcoming visit to India had been expedited to ensure its success.

He also briefed the Nepalese Prime Minister on the successful conclusion of regular meetings of bilateral mechanisms covering energy, water resources, trade and transit, and aviation. He further informed that preparations for operating a railway service between Ayodhya in India and Janakpur in Nepal had been completed. A trial run on the route was also conducted today.

During his visit, Foreign Secretary Misri also called on Nepal’s Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle, Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal, Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Biraj Bhakta Shrestha, and Minister for Infrastructure Development Sunil Lamsal.

On the 4th of November, the two Foreign Secretaries held delegation-level talks and reviewed ongoing cooperation across various sectors, discussing ways to further strengthen the mutually beneficial partnership between the two countries.

Foreign Secretary Misri also interacted with parliamentarians, including members of the Nepal-India Parliamentary Friendship Group and the Parliamentary Committee on International Relations and Tourism.

According to a joint press release issued today, both sides noted the growing engagement in areas including trade and commerce, development partnership, hydropower, physical connectivity, border management, energy and people-to-people ties. Newer areas of cooperation, including start-ups, digital connectivity, artificial intelligence and sports, were also discussed.

The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening the bilateral partnership. The visit, undertaken at the invitation of Nepal’s Foreign Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai, continued the tradition of regular high-level exchanges between the two neighbouring countries.

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