PM Oli to be accorded ceremonial reception at Rashtrapati Bhawan

New Delhi: Nepalese Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, who is on his first visit abroad after assuming office in October last, will be accorded ceremonial reception at the forecourts of the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Saturday.

Later, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will be calling on Prime Minister Oli. Thereafter, he will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Hyderabad House, which will be followed by delegation-level talks, exchange of agreements and press statements.

India and Nepal will be holding wide-ranging discussions on issues of mutual concern, as well as on strengthening bilateral cooperation in diverse areas, including developmental assistance, energy and connectivity.

The Prime Minister will host a banquet for him.

In the evening, there will be calls by the Minister of Home Affairs Rajnath Singh and Minister of Finance Arun Jaitleyon Prime Minister Oli. Besides, Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari will receive Prime Minister Oli, thereafter he will be a meeting with President Pranab Mukherjee.

EAM Sushma Swaraj received Prime Minister Oli upon his arrived here on Friday evening on a six-day visit to India. His visit is the first bilateral visit of a Nepali Prime Minister to India since Baburam Bhattarai’s visit in October 2011.

Former Prime Minister SushilKoirala had visited India in May 2014 for the swearing in of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had visited Nepal in August 2014 for a bilateral visit, which was the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Nepal in 17 years. Prime Minister Modi again visited in November 2014 for the SAARC Summit.

Prime Minister Oli is accompanied by his spouse Radhika Shakya, and they are staying at the Rashtrapati Bhavan as state guests.

Nepal Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Kamal Thapa, Minister for Finance Bishnu Poudel, Minister for Home Affairs Shakti Bahadur Basnet and Chief Advisor to Prime Minister Bishnu Prasad Rimal are accompanying Prime Minister Oli.

Similarly, the CEO of the National Reconstruction Authority, 13 Members of Parliament belonging to various parties, the Chief Secretary to the Government of Nepal, Secretaries and other high officials from different Ministries of the Government of Nepal, mediapersons and business representatives are also accompanying Prime Minister Oli.