Oli's visit will be highly successful: Indian envoy

Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli's upcoming visit to India will be highly successful and bilateral relations will be normalised after the visit, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Ranjit Rae said on Wednesday.

Oli will be accorded a warm welcome in India, and the visit would further strengthen the relationship between Nepal and India, Rae said ahead of the visit that starts on February 19.

Leading a delegation of over 100 members, Oli leaves for a six-day official visit to India on Friday.

Bilateral ties were strained since September last year when Nepal promulgated its new constitution, and India expressed reservations over some of the provisions.

Oli will hold political talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders that will be instrumental in helping clear the misunderstanding, Rae said.

Pointing out that India gives high priority to Oli's visit, the Indian ambassador said the visit would help resolve the differences that emerged between the two countries of late.

"Time and again, we have seen ups and downs in the relations but we have successfully resolved these hiccups through talks," the Indian envoy said.

Matters like economic cooperation for mutual benefit and clearing the recent misunderstanding will take priority.

Oli will visit the Tehri dam in Uttarakhand, and also look at the reconstruction work carried out in Gujarat after the 2001 earthquake.

"We want to show how we have been building the hydropower station and how reconstruction work has been carried out in Gujarat," Rae said.

"We are happy that the prime minister's maiden visit will be to India. PM Oli's visit to India will be successful, productive, and fruitful," the Indian envoy said.

He said the Nepal government's decision to form a political mechanism to resolve the issue of demarcation of provincial boundaries was "laudable", and advised that Nepal should settle its internal problems through dialogue.

Nepal's attempts to control cross-border crimes, cooperation in security matters and some legal framework will also be discussed during the visit, Rae said.

(Anil Giri can be contacted at girianil@gmail.com)