New Delhi: India is relying on President Pranab Mukherjee to put its relationship with Nepal back on track and dispel any misconceptions in the mind of the political leadership in the country.
The visit, the first by an Indian President in 18 years, comes just three months after the new Prime Minister Prachanda was sworn in.
President Pranab Mukheree who has dealt closely with Nepal as defence minister, external affairs minister and finance minister shares a bond with the Nepalese Prime Minister.
The Indian government can breathe easy with Prachanda in the driver's seat. He is seen as someone who is pro-India unlike his predecessor KP Oli who was seen to be strongly leaning towards China.
Indo-Nepal ties had taken a dip during last year's economic blockade with many in the Nepal's political fraternity blaming India for the crisis. With the President's 3-day visit India is looking to repair any previous damage and cement ties.
The visit also comes a time when the Nepalese government wants early execution of infrastructure projects which had been pending for decades. India and Nepal have signed several irrigation, road and power projects but there is disappointment that many key projects are yet to take off.
Speaking to CNN-News18, the Nepalese Foreign Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat said, "Even while you give a lot of assistance that doesn't matter, what matters is issues like roads and water which are directly related to the people. If these projects are not delivered some sections who don't want good relations with India will exploit this".
Nepal's former Prime Minister Babu Battarai also emphasised the need to complete projects on time.
Off late India Nepal relations have dipped due to certain misunderstandings, I hope the President's visit will once again raise our relations," Battarai told CNN-News18.
Sources in the Indian government say they are aware that lack of implementation of agreed projects is a matter of concern but add that Nepal government is largely to blame because of slow movement on procurement of land.
Both India and Nepal have now setup cooperation mechanisms to complete ongoing projects speedily. Speaking to the media Foreign Secretary Jaishankar said increasing connectivity, completion of development and hydel projects figured significantly in discussions.
Prachanda had come to power with the promise of addressing their demands like demarcation of provincial boundaries and greater representation in the upper house. The new government is looking at amendments to address their demands.
While India always says constitutional amendments for Madheshis is an internal issue of Nepal but in the high level talks President Mukherjee 'welcomed Nepal's efforts to have an inclusive constitution which addresses all stakeholders'. The Foreign Secretary said the President conveyed to the Nepali leadership that India was ready to share its experiences in building an inclusive constitution.
The two sides also discussed regional politics including SAARC and increasing cooperation in BIMSTEC and BBIN groupings.
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