Nepalese Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli is likely to pay an official visit to India from Sept. 16-17, the Foreign Ministry sources said here on Monday. A wide range of issues, such as trade, tourism, information technology, connectivity, hydropower and border, will be discussed during the visit, they added.
The Foreign Ministry is currently working towards finalising the agenda and itinerary for the proposed high-level visit, said the Foreign Minister's Press Advisor Ek Raj Pathak.
On Monday, Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba, who would be part of Oli's delegation, said that direct flights between Nepalgunj and Delhi will be on 'top' of her agenda during the upcoming visit to India.
“Direct air connectivity between Nepalgunj, a Western Nepal city, and New Delhi will be my top agenda,” Deuba said at a meeting with political leaders, lawmakers and industrialists at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"If this happens, it will certainly change the face of Western Nepal." she said, adding that the government has already done the necessary groundwork to strengthen the necessary infrastructure in the area for the purpose.
The people from around 25 districts of Western Nepal will benefit from the proposed direct flight between Nepalgunj and Delhi, Deuba said.
Nepalgunj can be the gateway to Kailash-Mansarovar situated in Tibet if we start direct flights between Nepalgunj and Delhi, she added.
The proposed flight between the two cities will benefit the people of both countries, she pointed out.
Nepal shares a border of over 1,850 km with five Indian states – Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Land-locked Nepal relies heavily on India for the transportation of goods and services. Nepal is also important for India in the context of its overall strategic interests in the region, and the leaders of the two countries have often noted the age-old “Roti Beti” relationship.
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