Delhi offers reconstruction aid to Kathmandu, envoy meets interim PM

Beyond rebuilding damaged landmarks, India signals readiness to strengthen economic ties and support Nepal’s democratic transition, emphasizing partnership amid recent unrest.

New Delhi: With New Delhi planning to offer Kathmandu support for the reconstruction of buildings damaged during the recent Gen Z protests, India’s ambassador to Nepal, Naveen Srivastava, called on interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki on Tuesday.

Srivastava handed over a congratulatory message from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sources in New Delhi said the two leaders are expected to speak over the phone soon.

“(The) Nepal-India relations are very special and extraordinary,” Karki posted on X after meeting Srivastava at her office in Singh Durbar, Kathmandu. She added that the ties between the two neighbouring countries would grow “stronger in future.”

New Delhi is particularly keen to support the repair of iconic buildings in Kathmandu, such as the Parliament House and Singh Durbar, which were set ablaze during the Gen Z protests, a source in New Delhi told DH. India is also ready to assist Nepal in boosting its economic momentum.

Srivastava reiterated India’s commitment to strengthening the close bonds of friendship and cooperation between the two nations, according to a press release from Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Indian envoy was the first foreign diplomat to formally meet Karki after she took over as interim prime minister on September 12.

A day after Karki was sworn in, Modi not only congratulated his new counterpart but also addressed the youth of Nepal, commending them for signalling a new dawn in their country.

Her predecessor, K P Sharma Oli, had been scheduled to visit New Delhi this week, but his government collapsed following the mass uprising triggered by the brutal police crackdown on Gen Z protesters earlier in the week.

Modi praised the people of Nepal for upholding democratic values amid the turmoil, subtly indicating that New Delhi would refrain from intervening in the controversy over the dissolution of parliament by President Ram Chandra Poudel, shortly after Karki’s swearing-in.

New Delhi is expected to extend an invitation to Karki for an early visit to India.