Nepal-India relations should be taken forward on a new footing, say stakeholders

KATHMANDU: With a series of high-level visits from Nepal to India underway, stakeholders have stressed the need to take Nepal-India relations forward on a new footing.

Home Minister Sudan Gurung left for India on Monday. In recent months, Finance Minister Dr Swarnim Wagle and Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal have also visited India, while preparations are underway for Prime Minister Balendra Shah’s visit.

Speakers expressed these views at a high-level interaction programme on Nepal-India relations organised by the Institute for Strategic and Socio-Economic Research (ISSR) and Khabarhub at Pavilion Hall in Kathmandu’s Durbarmarg.

Speaking at the event, former Nepali ambassador to India Deep Kumar Upadhyay said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his cabinet ministers were willing to improve relations with Nepal, but various factors had prevented progress.

He identified administrative hurdles in Nepal as an obstacle to improving ties and said a trust deficit persisted between the two countries. He expressed hope that the prime minister’s upcoming visit to India would help address the problem.