India and Nepal: the senior diplomats of both countries held a virtual meeting on Monday. In the meeting, both countries thoroughly reviewed the progress of various India aided developmental projects in Nepal. After the meeting, both nations decided to expedite the rapid implementation of the on-going projects.
Both countries held the meeting days after Prime Minister K Sharma Oli called PM Narendra Modi to greet him on India’s Independence Day. The first high-level contact regarding bilateral ties came under the severe strain of both nations following the issuance of the new political map by the Himalayan country in May (1).
The meeting was led by Shanker Das Bairagi, the foreign secretary of Nepal and Vinal Mohan Kwatra, the Indian Ambassador to Nepal. Both represented their respective nations in the Oversight Mechanism 8th meeting.
The meeting carried out a thorough review of the bilateral economic and development of corporation projects. The 7th Oversight Mechanism meeting was held on 8 July 2019.
India and Nepal to Deliberate Their Issues and Expedite the Implementation
As per the Indian Embassy’s press release, both nationals considered the issues and agreed to facilitate their implementation. Both nations noted the progress made in the development projects in the last year. It includes the reconstruction of houses damaged in Gorkha and Nuwakot districts after the earthquake. A total of 46,301 homes were reconstructed as part of the project.
The Motihari-Amlekhgunj was also operationalized under India and Nepal project agreement. It also includes petroleum products pipelines. Furthermore, there is also an integrated check post at Biratnagar and other High Impact Community Development Projects.
As per the release, Nepal has noted his appreciation for assistance for the COVID-19 pandemic and the medical equipment supply by India.
The meeting primarily addressed the status of implementation of the on-going projects under India and Nepal bilateral cooperation. The agreement covers Terai roads, cross-border railways, Arun-III hydropower projects, and petroleum product pipelines as per the Foreign Ministry of Nepal.
The India and Nepal Oversight Mechanism was established after PM Narendra Modi visited Nepal in September 2016. Both nations, India and Nepal, have agreed to hold the meeting on the mechanism on the mutually convenient date to view the progress.
