Indian Army Chief General Dalbir Singh arrives Kathmandu

Kathmandu: Indian Army Chief General Dalbir Singh arrived in Kathmandu on Friday on a three-day official visit on the invitation of his Nepali counterpart General Rajendra Chhetri.

The visit, that comes close on the heels of the visit of Indian President Pranab Mukherjee to Nepal last week, is expected to strengthen military and security ties between Nepal and India.

As soon as he arrived in Kathmandu, General Dalbir Singh and Chhetri held talks at the Nepal Army Headquarters where the two chiefs discussed a wide range of military and security issues and various issues of bilateral interests, the Nepal Army said.

Upon his arrival at the Nepal Army Headquarters, the Indian Army chief was accorded a Guard of Honour. He also laid wreath at the "Veer Smarak" at the Army Pavilion, in Tundikhel, in central Kathmandu.

Gen Dalbir Singh is an officer of the Indian Army`s Gorkha regiments having been commissioned into the 4th battalion of the 5 Gorkha Rifles on June 16, 1974.

Gen Singh attended a cultural programme, organised by Nepal Army Wives Association, at the Auditorium Hall.

During his stay in Nepal, Gen Singh is scheduled to pay a courtesy call on President Bidhya Devi Bhandari and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal in separate meetings.

The visiting Indian Army chief, together with Gen Chhetri, is also scheduled to inspect the Nepal-India joint group training exercise "Surya Kiran X" being held at the Nepal Army Battle School, Saljhandi, Rupandehi.

The battalion-level joint training exercise began on October 31 and is scheduled to conclude on November 13.