PM Narendra Modi to visit Nepal's Lumbini on ‘Buddha Purnima’ to deepen 'time-honoured' ties

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Lumbini in Nepal on the occasion of Buddha Jayanti to further deepen the 'time-honoured' linkages between the two countries. PM Modi will arrive in Nepal on Monday at the invitation of Nepalese counterpart Sher Bahadur Deuba.

India's ties with Nepal are "unparalleled", Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday, a day ahead of his visit to Lumbini in the neighbouring country on the occasion of Buddha Purnima. In a statement, PM Modi said he was looking forward to meeting Nepalese PM Sher Bahadur Deuba after their "productive" discussions during the latter's visit to India last month.

The Prime Minister said his visit to Nepal is intended to further deepen the "time-honoured" linkages between the two countries, adding both sides will continue to build on the shared understanding to expand ties in multiple areas, including hydropower and connectivity.

"Our ties with Nepal are unparalleled. The civilisational and people-to-people contacts between India and Nepal form the enduring edifice of our close relationship," PM Modi said in his departure statement. "My visit is intended to celebrate and further deepen these time-honoured linkages that have been fostered through centuries and recorded in our long history of inter-mingling," he said.

It will be the prime minister's fifth visit to Nepal since 2014. On arrival, PM Modi will visit Mayadevi Temple and attend a special prayer. He will be accompanied by PM Deuba. PM Modi will also be lighting a butter lamp in front of the Ashokan Pillar, and watering the Bodhi tree, gifted by PM Modi during his 2014 visit.

PM Modi will perform Bhoomi Poojan and lay the foundation stone of the India International Centre for Buddhist Culture & Heritage, being built at the initiative of the International Buddhist Confederation, New Delhi.

A bilateral meeting between the two leaders is also scheduled to undertake a comprehensive review of recent agreements. Some MoUs on cooperation in cultural and educational sectors are expected to be exchanged between the two countries after the bilateral meeting.PM Deuba will host a lunch in honour of PM Modi and his delegation.

Prime Minister Modi will also attend the 2566th Buddha Jayanti Celebration and address a large gathering of people from Nepal and India, including Buddhist scholars and monks. The visit is aimed at promoting close, comprehensive and multi-dimensional bilateral ties founded on the age-old connection of history, culture, tradition and religion. 

The visit is expected to strengthen people-to-people connections and promote bilateral tourism. During his recent visit to India, Nepal PM Sher Bahadur Deuba visited New Delhi and Varanasi where he offered prayers at Kashi Vishwanath and Kal Bhairav temples and also laid the foundation of a shelter home for widows at Nepal`s Pashupati Nath temple at Lalitaghat, Varanasi. 

The upcoming visit of PM Modi will be a follow up to that visit. This will be PM Modi`s fifth visit to Nepal since 2014 when he was elected as Prime Minister of India. It will be Prime Minister Modi`s first visit to Nepal after his re-election as PM of India in 2019. 

There have been regular exchanges of high-level visits and official interactions between India and Nepal. In 2014, Prime Minister Modi visited Nepal twice - in August for a bilateral visit and in November for the SAARC Summit. The PM also paid a state visit to Nepal from May 11-12, 2018 and a two-day visit for the BIMSTEC summit in 2018 during August 30-31 the same year.

In his previous visits to Nepal as Prime Minister of India, he has visited places of religious significance that bind together the people of India and Nepal like- Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu, and Janaki Mata Temple in Janakpur Dham and Muktinath Temple in Mustang. Likewise, at the invitation of PM Modi, then Nepal PM Deuba paid a state visit to India in August 2017 and again in April this year once again after he became the PM of Nepal.

The frequent high-level visits by the leaders of the two countries will help promote goodwill, trust, understanding and cooperation between the two countries and inject fresh momentum into multi-faceted bilateral relations of friendship and cooperation. 

(With Agency Inputs)