KATHMANDU, JULY 6
Newly appointed Ambassador of India to Nepal Naveen Srivastava has paid a courtesy call on Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Pampha Bhusal.
During the meeting held at the ministry today, they discussed the mutual relations and cooperation between Nepal and India.
Stating that Nepal-India relations have moved forward with friendship, cooperation and mutual respect, Minister Bhusal expressed belief that the friendly relations between the two countries would further deepen in the coming days.
Bhusal said that she is hopeful of additional cooperation from India in the expansion and development of the energy sector in the future.
"The current energy trade between Nepal and India is positive. I believe India needs more of the clean energy we have. Therefore, Nepal is willing to ink a long-term electricity trade agreement with India in the near future. I am confident of significant success in the electricity trade between the two countries during your tenure," Bhusal said.
She emphasised on the necessity to push forward Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project (PMP) and actively implement the understanding between the two countries to address the floods issue.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Srivastava assured that he would do his best to further expand cooperation between the two countries.
Highlighting the significant achievements in trade of power over the last year, he praised the cooperation of both countries.
Assuring that he would continue to take initiatives for power generation and trade, he said, "Power trade is beneficial for both the countries. We will continue to support it."
Water Resources and Irrigation Secretary Sagar Kumar Rai, Joint Secretaries Baburam Bhandari and Chiranjeevi Chataut and representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were also present during the meeting.
A version of this article appears in the print on July 7, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.