Kathmandu, August 2

Indian Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is visiting Nepal in the third week of August to participate in the fifth meeting of the ministerial-level Nepal-India Joint Commission.

The two governments are still working on the exact date for the visit, with the proposed date being between August 21 and 25, according to sources. “Most probably, the visit will take place on August 22,” said the source, who did not want to be named. Jaishankar’s visit will be the first high-level political visit from India after Narendra Modi was re-elected Indian prime minister in May.

Besides taking part in the meeting, Jaishankar is also expected to call on PM KP Sharma Oli and President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, the sources said.

Jaishankar had last visited Nepal in September 2015 as a special envoy of Indian PM Modi just as the then constituent assembly overwhelmingly endorsed the new constitution.

Jaishankar’s upcoming visit to Nepal is seen as a run-up to visits by Indian President Ram Nath Kovind and PM Modi.

During his visit to India in May to attend Modi’s swearing-in ceremony, Oli had extended invitation to Modi to pay a visit to Nepal, which Modi accepted with pleasure. On the same occasion, during his meeting with Indian President Kovind, Oli had also conveyed cordial invitation extended by President Bhandari to Indian President Kovind.

The two governments are also preparing to inaugurate the recently-completed Raxaul-Amlekhgunj Petroleum Pipeline during a high-level visit from India.