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Indian Envoy's Courtesy Call on Nepali PM

Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava on Monday called on Nepali Prime Minister Balendra Shah in the first meeting since Shah assumed office in March. The courtesy call opens a series of individual discussions Prime Minister Shah is holding with foreign envoys, marking a clear shift toward direct, one-to-one diplomacy.

Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava also met with Nepal's Council of Ministers in Singha Durbar.

The meeting between the Indian Ambassador and the Nepali PM went on for abot an hour. As per the office of the Nepal Prime Minister, both sides discussed various aspects of Nepal-India relations, focusing on bilateral friendship, mutual interests, development partnerships, and ongoing cooperation during the meeting.

Ambassador Srivastava extended his best wishes to Prime Minister Shah and reaffirmed India's commitment to further strengthening bilateral relations.

In response, Prime Minister Shah emphasised the need to deepen the historical ties between the two neighbouring nations and highlighted the importance of working together in areas of shared interest.

This meeting marks the first time Shah has held face-to-face bilateral talks with an individual foreign diplomat since taking office nearly four months ago. Shah had previously maintained a firm stance against single-delegate meetings with ambassadors, preferring group interactions instead.

Following his meeting with Srivastava, Shah is scheduled to hold a separate one-to-one discussion with Chinese Ambassador Zhang Maoming later today, followed by a meeting with US Charge d'Affaires Scott Urbom tomorrow. Sources close to the Prime Minister noted that preparations for these high-level diplomatic meetings were finalised weeks ago but were briefly delayed following recent events in Sunsari.

History of India-Nepal Development Cooperation

Nepal is one of India's largest and most prominent development partners. India-Nepal Cooperation for developing modern infrastructure in Nepal began in 1951 with the construction of Gauchar Airport in Kathmandu (completed in 1954). The Indian Aid Mission in Nepal was also set up in 1954 for coordinating various developmental projects of the Government of India in areas of connectivity, health, education, power and other sectors.

Over the past seven decades, the India-Nepal development cooperation has expanded and diversified. It now covers a wide range of sectors such as health, education, power, archives, archaeology, connectivity, trade, agriculture, cultural heritage preservation, and capacity building amongst many.

The projects implemented are based on the needs and priorities of Nepal and are spread across the length and breadth of the country. (ANI)