Kathmandu, May 12
Indian
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is coming to Nepal on an official visit on Monday,
May 16, to attend a special ceremony to be organised on the occasion of Buddha
Jayanti in Lumbini, the birthplace Lord Buddha, both the countries announced on
Thursday.
He
will be on the fifth entourage of Nepal since he assumed the post of PM in
2014, and the first after his re-election to the post in 2019. PM Modi is
coming here at the invitation of his Nepali counterpart Sher Bahadur Deuba.
According
to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), the PM of India together with the PM
of Nepal, will participate in a prayer at the Mayadevi Temple, lay the
foundation stone for the construction of a centre for Buddhist culture and heritage
at the Monastic Zone in Lumbini, and address the special ceremony to celebrate
Buddha Jayanti at the Lumbini International Buddhist Meditation Centre and
Assembly Hall.
The
centre for Buddhist culture and heritage will be built on a plot belonging to
the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC), New Delhi within the Lumbini
Monastic Zone.
“While
in Lumbini, the two Prime Ministers will hold bilateral talks and exchange
views on Nepal-India cooperation and matters of mutual interests. PM Deuba will
host a luncheon in honour of the Prime Minister of India and the visiting delegation,”
the MoFA said in a statement on Thursday.
It
said that the upcoming visit of the Indian PM will further strengthen the
bilateral relations and the age-old socio-cultural bonds between the two
countries.
Meanwhile,
the Ministry of External Affairs of India said in a statement on Thursday that
PM Modi’s visit continues the tradition of regular high-level exchanges between
India and Nepal in furtherance of its Neighbourhood First policy.
“It
underscores the shared civilizational heritage of the peoples of both countries,”
read the statement.
Earlier,
on Tuesday, PM Deuba in his address to a rally in Dadeldhura had said that the
West Seti Hydropower Project in Sudurpaschim Province would be handed over to
India during the visit of PM Modi. According to him, an agreement would be made
between the two countries on the project since export of electricity to India
is more convenient compared to China.
Minister
for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Narayan Khadka, will call on the visiting PM. PM Modi
will return to New Delhi on the same day.
The
PM of the southern neighbour had visited Nepal twice in 2014 in August and
November, and twice in 2018 in May and August. The visit in 2014 August was a
state visit, and that of November was to attend the 18th SAARC
Summit while the visit in 2018 August was for the 4th BIMSTEC Summit.
Meanwhile,
PM Deuba had paid a three-day official visit to India in April this year at the
invitation of his counterpart, Modi.
Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 13 May 2022.
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