Kathmandu, February 18

Indian Railways Minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu arrived here today afternoon to participate in the ‘Nepal Infrastructure Summit 2017’.

Highlighting the role of infrastructure development for economic prosperity, Minister Prabhu opined that the Infrastructure Summit would be pivotal for accelerating economic growth of Nepal at a time when the country is striving to graduate to the league of developing nations, according to a media release.

The two-day summit, which is being organised by the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) in association with the Nepal government and Youth Community for Nepalese Contractors, is all set to kick-off on Sunday. Prabhu has been invited as the guest of honour and a keynote speaker at the opening ceremony of the summit.

On his arrival at Tribhuvan International Airport, Prabhu was welcomed by CNI President Hari Bhakta Sharma, Joint Secretary of Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Bishnu Om Bade Shrestha, Indian Ambassador Ranjit Rae and representatives of the private sector.

CNI President Sharma was of the view that his three-day visit will be a very good opportunity for sharing ideas and experiences of Indian model of infrastructure development where involvement of private sector has become one of the key drivers in accelerating steady rate of economic growth, as per the release.

During his stay in Nepal, Minister Prabhu will pay a courtesy call on President Bidhya Devi Bhandari and Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal at their offices. Prabhu will also have a meeting with Ramesh Lekhak, minister for physical infrastructure and transport, relevant government officials and private sector representatives, including prominent industrialists, the release says.

CNI believes that the visit of the Indian minister for railways in the Infrastructure Summit would be helpful in strengthening the connectivity between Nepal and India for better socio-economic development of both countries. It is also expected that the views and experiences of Prabhu would be helpful for policymakers and development actors of Nepal in expediting the pace of infrastructure development of the country, the release says.