Nepal Army chief to visit India in January

Nepal Army chief General Purna Chandra Thapa will visit India next month where he will be conferred the title of honorary general of the Indian Army, a senior Nepal Army official said on Sunday.

It is a customary practice between the two neighbouring nations to award the honorary title to each other's army chief.

Chief of Army Staff General Purna Chandra Thapa will be leaving for India, his first international tour since taking charge of the Nepal Army, on Junary 11, Nepal Army spokesperson Brig Gen Gokul Bhandaree said.

During his six-day tour, General Thapa will be handed over the insignia of the honorary chief of the Indian Army by President Ram Nath Kovind at a function to be held at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, he said.

General Thapa will also meet Defence Minister Nirmala Sitaraman and visit some of the defence training institutes. He will return on January 16, Bhandaree said.

The Nepal Army chief, who took charge of the Himalayan nation's defence force on August 9, is visiting India on the invitation of his Indian counterpart General Bipin Rawat.

Earlier in July, General Rawat was in Nepal to receive the similar honour from Nepal's President Bidya Devi Bhandari.

The practice of exchanging the title of honorary chief has been going on since 1950.

Similar to the practice followed by Nepali prime ministers, there is a tradition in the Nepal Army that sees its chiefs make New Delhi their first international destination after taking command of the defence force.