Shiv Shankar Mukherjee

Shiv Shankar Mukherjee (File Photo)
Indian ambassador to Nepal, Shiv Shankar Mukherjee, has said India considers it a privilege to stand by the people of Nepal. We have been and shall always be there with Nepal and its people, he said.

In a message issued on the 57th Republic Day of India—and carried by major dailies in Kathmandu—on Thursday, Mukherjee said apart from the unique cultural, historical, ethnic, demographic, economic and other ties which we have with Nepal, our close and friendly relations with our Himalayan neighbour have been guided by the dictum: What is good for Nepal is good for India.

Saying that a republican democracy has taken strong, deep and immutable roots in the country, the Indian ambassador said while engaged in the pursuance of its socio-economic development, India has shouldered the responsibility of carrying its friends and partners in the developing world along. “This is because we believe, to paraphrase what Pandit (Jawaharlal) Nehru once famously said, peace, prosperity and progress are indivisible,” he added.

The message by Indian envoy did not refer to the constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, which India said it considered two pillars of stability in Nepal.

India is the largest investor and trade partner of Nepal. In the past ten years, Nepal’s exports to India have grown by 1,100 percent while its imports from India have grown 350 percent. At present, over two-third of Nepal’s total exports are to India while 63 percent of Nepal’s imports from India.

According to the Indian embassy in Kathmandu, over 1,00 projects worth about NRs 1,400 crore are under implementation or consideration in 61 out of 75 districts in Nepal at present. The prominent projects completed or under construction with the Indian assistance include the East-West highway optical fibre project, BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, a number of highways, feeder roads, bridges, airports, schools, irrigation and hydropower, sanitation and drinking water, among others.

More than 1.2 lakh Gurkha soldiers are serving in or have retired from the Indian Army and total pension disbursement to ex-Indian Gurkha soldiers stood at more than NRs 700 crore last year.

Nepali leaders have also felicitated India on the occasion of her 57th Republic Day. In his message to the Indian President A P J Abdul Kalam, His Majesty King Gyanendra said Nepali people and the government highly appreciate the assistance provided by the government and people of India. His Majesty expressed hope that friendly relations between the two countries and peoples would further strengthen in the days to come.

Indian ambassador Mukherjee hoisted the national flag of India amidst a ceremony at the sprawling Indian embassy premises in Kathmandu this morning. The reception hosted by the embassy on the occasion on Thursday has been postponed to Saturday afternoon due to the nationwide shutdown strike called by the seven party opposition alliance today.