Kathmandu, Jan. 16
Minister for
Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali has said that his visit to India has
further consolidated the intimate and multidimensional relations between two inextricably
linked neighbours -- Nepal and India. While there, both countries held in-depth
discussions on the review of 1950 Peace and Friendship Treaty, report of the
Eminent Persons Group (EPG) and sorting out the border disputes.
Talking to
journalists upon his arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport on Satuday
afternoon, he said five areas of cooperation were primarily discussed during
the meeting of the Nepal-India Joint Comimission, held on Friday.
“Meeting of the
Nepal-India Joint Commission has reviewed issues like political, security and
border; connectivity/infrastructure and economic cooperation; trade and transit;
energy and water resources; tourism and education and agreed to promote
bilateral cooperation in these areas,” he added.
According to
him, India has assured Nepal that it would give Nepal high priority for supplying
COVID-19 vaccines.
Likewise,
discussions were held on opening the aviation and land routes that were closed
due to the pandemic, expediting the process of handing over 11 sections of the
Postal Highway and completing its remaining three sections, in addition to
expanding the railway line from Kurtha to Bardibas. Currently, the railway line
connects only two places -- Jaynagar (India) and Kurtha (Nepal).
“We also talked
about initiating the construction of Integrated Check Post at Bhairahawa
border, connecting four-lane road, being constructed near Mahakali River, with
Indian national highways, and construction of cross-border economic zones,”
said Gyawali, adding, “agreement has been reached to prepare the Detailed
Project Report (DPR) of the Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project, while discussions
were also held about constructing three motorable bridges on Mahakali River at
Sirsa, Jhulaghat and Darchula”
The two sides
reached an agreement to review both Transit and Railway and Trade Treaties, he
added.
Both countries
have also agreed to accord high priority to the development of
Bhairahawa-Gorakhpur high voltage transmission line as well as other cross-border
transmission lines.
Likewise, the
perennial issue of inundation of Nepali land due to the construction of roads
and other infrastructure on the Indian side also featured in the discussion.
Both the countries discussed implementing the past agreements to address that
problem.
Minister Gyawali
had left for New Delhi on Thursday leading a delegation that included Foreign
Secretary Bharat Raj Poudyal, Health Secretary Laxman Aryal, Nepali Ambassador
to India Nilambar Acharya, together with other government officials.
He held a
delegation-level discussion with his Indian counterpart S. Jaishankar, along
with a private meeting.
FM Gyawali met
Indian Minister for Defence Rajnath Singh, and delivered a lecture on
Nepal-India Relations at the Indian Council of World Affairs on Friday.
This is the
first top-level visit from Nepal to India, which, in November 2019 had published
a map including Nepal’s Kalapani, Lipulek and Limpiyadhura as its territory, and
‘unilaterally’ built a road to Nepal-China border in May 2020.
The bilateral
relations between the two countries soured in its aftermath. However, rapprochement
gained momentum after Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli telephoned Indian PM
Narendra Modi congratulating him on the occasion of India’s Independence Day on
August 15 last year.
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