India extends Rs 1.6 billion aid to Nepal for rebuilding earthquake-hit houses

India on Monday extended a financial aid of 1.6 billion Nepalese rupees to Nepal to help 50,000 people in Nuwakot and Gorkha districts rebuild their houses damaged in the devastating earthquake in 2015.

India's ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri handed over the cheque to Finance Secretary of Nepal Rajan Khanal for the reconstruction work, Indian embassy here said in a statement.

The ambassador thanked the Nepal government for the partnership and reiterated that India remained committed to completion of post-earthquake reconstruction projects in the Himalayan nation.

India has so far granted Nepal a total of Rs 4.5 billion Nepalese rupees under the housing reconstruction projects.

India is partnering with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) for providing socio-technical facilitation to the house owners to ensure that they rebuild their homes as per Nepal government's earthquake resilient norms.

Central Nepal's Gorkha district was the epicentre of the devastating earthquake which struck the Himalayan nation in April 2015, claiming over 9,000 lives and damaging 800,000 houses.

Nepalese officials appreciated the sustained and generous humanitarian support extended by India for the post-earthquake reconstruction, the statement said.

India and Nepal in February 2016 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for USD 100-million grant to support reconstruction of 50,000 private houses in the two districts of the Himalayan nation.