Nepal Deputy PM Nidhi to visit India on Thursday, meets envoy

Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister Bimlendra Nidhi will visit India on Thursday as the special envoy of Prime Minister Prachanda, days after the new Nepalese government sent an emissary to its northern neighbour China.
The move to send emissaries to India and China is said to be Nepal's bid to woo its two giant neighbors and firm up bilateral ties after the formation of the new government.
Nidhi, who also holds the Home Affairs portfolio, will begin his two-day visit on Thursday.
He is likely to discuss matters relating to the proposed visit to Nepal by President Pranab Mukherjee and Nepalese President Bidya Bhandari's visit to India, according to official sources.

Ahead of the visit, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Ranjit Rae today met Nidhi at his office in Singhdurbar Secretariat.
During the meeting, they discussed matters relating to Nepal-India relations, mutual interest and "other relevant topics", according to a statement issued by the Home Ministry.

Rae assured Nidhi of India's continued support to Nepal in areas including security and implementation of development projects.
Prachanda, the Maoist chief, assumed office earlier this month for his second term as prime minister.
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara yesterday left for Beijing with an invitation to Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit Nepal.

Mahara's two-day trip to China is the first high-level visit by a Nepalese official to a foreign country after the formation of the Prachanda government.