PM willing be visiting Nepal on May 16

By Our Special Correspondent

The PM is scheduled to visit Lumbini, the birthplace of Gautam Buddh, at the invitation of his Nepalese counterpart Sher Bahadur Deuba. His hour-long trip will come on the occasion of Buddha Purnima, Lord Buddha’s birth anniversary.

Prime Minister Deuba is also scheduled to participate in the programme along with his Indian counterpart. Deuba was in Delhi last month on his first bilateral visit abroad after becoming prime minister for the fifth time in July 2021.

During the visit, which was aimed at injecting fresh momentum into bilateral ties, Deuba held talks with Modi on a number of key issues, including the boundary issue. Nepal is 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.

Nepal shares a border of over 1,850 km with five Indian states – Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarkhand. The Himalayan nation relies heavily on India for the transportation of goods and services. Meanwhile, PM Modi on Wednesday emplaned for Paris for his final leg of the three-nation visit.