CoAS Chhetri reaches New Delhi

KATHMANDU, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) — Chief of the army staff of the Nepalese Army Gen. Rajendra Chhetri has started a six-day visit to India on Monday. The Nepalese Army headquarters said in a statement on Sunday that the army chief is visiting India at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Gen. Dalbir Singh.
He will be leading a nine-member delegation comprising senior officials of the Nepalese Army.
Gen Chettri will be conferred with Honorary General of the Indian Army by Indian President Pranab Mukherjee at a special function to be held in New Delhi, according to the statement.
The honorary title has been a customary practice between Nepal and India of honoring each other’s army chiefs since 1950.
Gen. Chhetri is scheduled to hold meetings with Indian President Mukherjee, Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Defense Minister Manohar Parikkar among others during his stay in India.
The Nepalese Army chief is paying his first foreign visit after he took over the reins of the Army on Sept. 10 last year.
The visit comes at a time when relations between the two South Asian neighbors have been at a low ebb following an unofficial trade embargo imposed by India since the Himalayan country promulgated a new constitution in September. However, India denied any kind of embargo on Nepal.