Kathmandu, October 5

Indian President Pranab Mukherjee, who is scheduled to arrive in Nepal on a three-day state visit on November 2, will also visit Pokhara, Lumbini and Janakpurdham.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Prakash Sharan Mahat today told The Himalayan Times that preparations were under way to ensure President Mukherjee’s visit to Pokhara as well as religious cities— Lumbini and Janakpurdham.

In a separate interaction, Indian Ambassador Ranjit Rae said, “It’s an important state-visit of the Indian president after a long hiatus.” KR Narayanan was the last Indian president to visit Nepal in May 1998.

Referring to the non-implementation of India-assured development projects in Nepal, Rae said: “We want to focus on removing prevailing doubt and suspicion regarding India-invested development cooperation projects in Nepal.”

Prior to the Indian president’s visit, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal will visit India from October 15 to 17— to attend BRICS Summit slated for October 15-16 in Goa.

During his visit, the PM will hold sideline meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian PM Narendra Modi, as well as other participating dignitaries, according to Minister Mahat, who will accompany the PM.