The Hindu : National : India, Nepal ties to be reviewed

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 08, 2004

National

National

India, Nepal ties to be reviewed

By Our Diplomatic Correspondent

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 7. The Prime Minister of Nepal, Sher Bahadur Deuba, will pay a working visit to India from tomorrow to September 12 and hold talks with the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh. He will call on the President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the External Affairs Ministry said.

Senior Cabinet members representing the multi-party Government will accompany him. He will also meet the United Progressive Alliance chairperson, Sonia Gandhi.

"The visit would provide an opportunity to comprehensively review, at the highest level, the entire gamut of India-Nepal bilateral relations, including issues relating to trade, water resources, defence and security and border management. India and Nepal have a long history of mutually beneficial cooperation in diverse fields. Our relations are underpinned by a vigorous and intimate contact at the people-to-people level," the statement said.

It will be Mr. Deuba's first visit to India after taking over as the head of a multiparty government in June this year. He last visited India as Prime Minister in March 2002.

The visit comes at a time when Maoist elements have intensified their campaign against the Nepalese Government — including the imposition of a blockade on the capital city of Kathmandu and a shutdown of operations by Indian companies in Nepal.

India is concerned at the Maoist activities and has provided military support to Kathmandu to deal with the problem.

`Ties excellent'

PTI reports from Kathmandu:

Mr. Deuba today described the Indo-Nepal relations as "excellent" and said the bilateral ties should be further strengthened. "There exists excellent relations between Nepal and India and we do have to reinforce these relations, including at high-level visits."

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National