Kathmandu, July 7:

Indian ambassador to Nepal Rakesh Sood today handed over a cheque bearing Rs 8.36 crore to the Ministry for Water Resources.

The fund is meant to finance the construction of an embankment along the Bagmati river and to execute a Kamala river-control project.

In the first phase, assistance worth about Rs 50 crore will be provided by the Indian government for the extension of embankments along the Lalbakeya and Bagmati rivers and for the protection works along Kamala river, according to a press release issued by the Indian embassy in Kathmandu.

Subsequently, the Indian government has also committed to providing an additional

Rs 178 crore for the construction of a 63-km embankment and associated protection measures along the Kamala river, for which the detailed project report has been approved.

This assistance is being extended in accordance with the decision of the Nepal-India Sub Committee on Embankment Construction which held its last meeting in Birgunj from May 7 to 8.

In May 2008, India had provided Rs 5.19 crore to the government of Nepal for flood control.