Press Trust of India
New Delhi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Nepalese counterpart Pushpakamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ on Thursday vowed to resolve the vexed boundary dispute in the spirit of friendship.
The two sides signed several major pacts including one on increasing New Delhi’s import of power from the neighbouring country to 10,000 megawatt in the next ten years from the current 450 megawatt.
In the wide-ranging talks between Modi and Prachanda, the Indian side agreed to the first trilateral power trade from Nepal to Bangladesh through India for up to 40 megawatt of power, a move that is seen as a significant step towards ensuring greater regional cooperation. In his media statement, Modi said both sides will continue to strive in taking the India-Nepal partnership to the “Himalayan heights” and that the important decisions taken at the talks are to make the ties ‘superhit’ in the future.
In total, the two sides signed seven pacts which included a revised treaty of transit that was described by Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra as “once in a generation kind of an agreement”, as it would provide Nepal access to inland waterways of India for the first time and expected to contribute very significantly to expansion of trade and investment linkages.
The two sides also firmed up several new initiatives to expand cooperation in areas of hydro-electric power, petroleum infrastructure, railway connectivity, cross-border payment systems and trade and investment as part of a futuristic approach to strengthen the overall trajectory of ties.
“We will continue to strive to take our relationship to Himalayan heights. And in this spirit, we will solve all the issues, whether it is of boundary or any other issue,” Modi said in his media statement in presence of Prachanda.
In his comments, the Nepalese Prime Minister, who arrived here on Wednesday on a four-day visit to India, said he and Modi discussed the boundary matter. “I urge Prime Minister Modi-ji to resolve the boundary matter through the established bilateral diplomatic mechanism,” he said.
The ties between the two countries came under severe strain after Kathmandu published a new political map in 2020 that showed three Indian territories – Limpiyadhura, Kalapani and Lipulekh – as part of Nepal.
India reacted sharply, calling it a “unilateral act” and cautioned Kathmandu that such “artificial enlargement” of territorial claims will not be acceptable to it.
Foreign Secretary Kwatra referred to the comments by the two prime ministers and said they not only speak of the intent of the two leaders and the two systems, they also speak about the specifics through which they intend this to be carried forward.
To a question on whether the China factor figured in the talks, he said the discussions also covered wider developments and challenges and how the two countries should cooperate to mitigate them.
“I remember that nine years ago, in 2014, within three months of taking charge in office, I made my first visit to Nepal. At that time, I had given a ‘HIT’ formula for India-Nepal relations, HIT – Highways, I-ways, and Trans-ways,” he said.
Modi further added: “Today, after nine years, I am happy to say that our partnership has truly been a ‘hit’. In the last nine years, we have accomplished many achievements in various fields.”
The Prime Minister also referred to the religious and cultural ties between India and Nepal, saying they are very old and very strong.
“In order to further strengthen this beautiful link, Prime Minister Prachanda ji and I have decided that the projects related to Ramayana circuit should be expedited,” he said.
Following the talks, Modi and Prachanda remotely unveiled the Kurtha-Bijalpura section of railway line, virtually flagged off a cargo train from Bathnaha (India) to Nepal Customs Yard and inaugurated Integrated Checkposts (ICPs) at Nepalgunj in Nepal and Rupaidiha on the Indian side.
They also remotely joined the ground breaking ceremonies for ICPs at Bhairahawa (Nepal) and Sonauli (India), phase-II facilities under Motihari-Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline as well as kick started the project for construction of the Indian portion of Gorakhpur-Bhutwal transmission line.
“Last year we adopted a landmark vision document for cooperation in the power sector. Taking this forward, a long term power trade agreement has been signed between India and Nepal today. Under this, we have set a target of importing 10,000 MW of electricity from Nepal in the coming ten years,” Modi said.
At present, India imports around 450 MW of power from Nepal.
Talking about the transit agreement, Modi said along with new rail routes, provision has also been made for the facility of India’s inland waterways. Modi also referred to the landmark vision document adopted by India and Nepal on the power sector.