India and Nepal working on PM Balen Shah visit in November

In the ongoing Nepal government led by Prime Minister Balen Shah, bilateral talks between India and Nepal are progressing towards scheduling a visit by Balen Shah in late November, according to sources. This comes six months into the new Nepal administration, which had initially ruled out foreign trips for its leader.

Nepal's Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle recently met with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. Jaishankar mentioned in a X post that discussions focused on enhancing overall collaboration, particularly in economic, energy, and connectivity sectors. Wagle's visit, sources say, aimed to lay groundwork for Balen Shah's upcoming India trip.

Key areas of cooperation highlighted by sources include cross-border connectivity, transmission infrastructure, clean-energy initiatives, and investment opportunities. Nepal aims to achieve 35,000 megawatts of clean energy through run-of-river and storage projects over the next nine years. The visit also seeks to encourage Indian investment, digitalization, high-value agriculture, green manufacturing, tourism, and production-sharing agreements.

The talks were particularly significant following the devastating August 26 flash flood that left at least 270 Indians missing. Wagle, a seasoned minister, met key officials during his two-day visit to discuss post-disaster reconstruction and economic recovery. Sources noted that India's humanitarian aid, amounting to about 95 tonnes of relief material, has fostered goodwill between the two nations.