Kathmandu, 14 February: Nepal has requested India to provide additional air route for the smooth operation of Gautam Budda International airport in Bhairhawa.
For the better understanding of our esteem readers here is the press statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) and another published by the Indian side.
The (MoFA) stated: Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal and his Indian counterpart Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra held a bilateral meeting in Kathmandu on Monday.
During the meeting, the two Foreign Secretaries reviewed various aspects of Nepal-India relations covering connectivity, trade and transit, power sector cooperation, agriculture, education, culture, health sector and people to people relations, among others.
The two sides reviewed with satisfaction the progress made in the connectivity projects such as railways, transmissions lines, bridges and the ICPs.
The Foreign Secretary of Nepal thanked the Government of India for the supply of fertilizers, easing of export restrictions on food grains, and delivery of dialysis machines.
The two sides discussed the early conclusion of the renewed transit treaty, review of the trade treaty, and convening of the Inter-governmental Committee on Trade (IGC) at an early date.
The two sides also expressed commitment to allow export of power from Nepal to India on long-term basis utilizing all products of the exchange market. They also discussed technical upgrading of cross-border transmission lines and early approval of the four proposed transmission line projects under the LOC-IV.
The Foreign Secretary of Nepal reiterated the request of the Government of Nepal for additional air-entry routes as well as early concurrence of the near border flight operation of the Gautam Buddha International Airport, Bhairahawa.
The two Foreign Secretaries also discussed the boundary matters. In this regard, they exchanged views on completing the boundary works in the remaining segments through the established bilateral mechanisms.
They also agreed to finalize the MoU between foreign service academies of the two countries.
The meeting was held in an atmosphere of friendship and cordiality reflecting the close and multifaceted relations between the two neighbours.
Foreign Secretary Paudyal hosted luncheon in honour of the visiting Indian Foreign Secretary and the members of his delegation.
In the afternoon today, Foreign Secretary Kwatra called on President Bidya Devi Bhandari, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Minister for Foreign Affairs Bimala Rai Paudyal. Matters of mutual interests were discussed during the calls on.
The Foreign Secretary of India arrived in Kathmandu this morning and is scheduled to depart tomorrow, 14 February 2023.
The Indian side has said:
Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra commenced his two – day official visit to Nepal at the invitation of the Foreign Secretary of Nepal, Bharat Raj Paudyal, Monday. The talks held between the two Foreign Secretaries in the morning covered wide ranging discussions on various areas of the multifaceted cooperation between India and Nepal, including development partnership, energy cooperation, trade and economic cooperation, institutional engagements and people to people ties.
Both Foreign Secretaries also reviewed the progress made in the implementation of the commitments made during the Prime Ministerial visits held last year, including in the areas of cross border connectivity, hydropower cooperation, culture, trade and commerce. On railway connectivity, both sides agreed for the early completion and operationalization of the remaining sections of the Jaynagar-Kurtha-Bijalpura-Bardibas and the Jogbani-Biratnagar rail links, as well as taking further steps on the proposed Raxaul-Kathmandu rail link, and committed to expediting the procedural requirements, to enable their early implementation.
The two sides appreciated the progress made in the energy cooperation last year, wherein Nepal is now able to export 452.6 MW power to India, creating additional sources of revenue for Nepal and energy for India. The Nepalese side requested Indian side to explore allowing power export on long term basis. They also requested for utilizing all products of the exchange market in order to further enhance power trade between India and Nepal. The Indian side took note of both the requests. While reiterating commitment to the full implementation of the Joint Vision Statement on Power Sector Cooperation agreed between India and Nepal in April 2022, the two Foreign Secretaries agreed to also work together for mutually beneficial cooperation in the sub-regional context.
Nepali side also appreciated the special provisions made for Nepal in the export of sugar, wheat and paddy by India, so as to ensure smooth supply of agricultural products to Nepal during the times of global uncertainties.
The two Foreign Secretaries also discussed multilateral and regional cooperation. In this regard, the Nepalese side appreciated the invitation extended by India under its G20 Presidency to Nepal to participate in the G20 Finance Track this year. The Nepalese side also reiterated commitment for early ratification of the International Solar Alliance.
Foreign Secretary Kwatra also called on President Bidya Devi Bhandari, Prime Minister of Nepal, Mr. Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Foreign Minister Bimala Rai Paudyal. During these meetings, the two sides discussed ways to further strengthen the unique ties between our two countries and expanding our multifaceted development cooperation for the benefit of our two peoples.
During the day, Foreign Secretary Kwatra also called on former Prime Ministers Sher Bahadur Deuba and K.P. Sharma Oli. Continuing his visit on Tuesday, Foreign Secretary Kwatra will be meeting other senior members of the Government of Nepal and other leaders.
India and Nepal share a close partnership that is rooted in age-old civilizational and cultural linkages, characterized by strong people to people ties. The visit is in keeping with the tradition of high level exchanges between the two countries.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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