KATHMANDU, MARCH 15

Vinay Mohan Kwatra, ambassador of India to Nepal, and Minister of Education, Science, and Technology Devendra Paudel of the Government of Nepal jointly performed the groundbreaking ceremony of Tribhuvan University's Central Library project being built under the Government of India's USD 50 million grant assistance in the education sector.

The event was also attended by senior officials of Tribhuvan University, representatives from the Embassy, Central Level Project Implementation Unit in Nepal, and other stakeholders.

On the occasion, a memorandum of understanding was also signed between the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, the Government of Nepal and Embassy of India for implementation of the project.

The library is being constructed at a cost of Rs 316.9 million and will be built as per earthquake-resilient reconstruction norms of Nepal.

According to the Indian Embassy, this new three-storey building of Tribhuvan University Central Library will be equipped with modern facilities and will include several academic sections along with ancillary facilities.

Central Building Research Institute, a premier institute in India in the field of earthquake-resilient reconstruction, will provide technical expertise for construction of this library.

India has committed USD 250 million earthquake reconstruction grant assistance to the Government of Nepal. Of this, USD 50 million will be spent on the education sector under which 71 educational institutions across eight districts are being built; 14 of these have already been handed over and the remaining are under-construction.

The present Tribhuvan University Central Library building was built with the Government of India's assistance in 1967. Other major projects undertaken by the Government of India in Tribhuvan University includes construction of Gandhi Bhawan in 1973.

Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador Kwatra reiterated that this project was a testament to the multi-faceted, strong and robust development partnership between India and Nepal. He further stated that India remained committed to continuing collaboration with the Government of Nepal in its socioeconomic development.

Minister Paudel appreciated India's continued support to Nepal in augmenting its physical infrastructure in the education sector.

A version of this article appears in the print on March 16, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.