Their Royal Highnesses Crown Prince Paras and Crown Princess Himani left for Vienna, capital of the Republic of Austria today.

Their Royal Highnesses are visiting at the invitation of Wolfgang Schusel, Federal Chancellor of the Republic of Austria.

Crown Prince is scheduled to address a programme to be organised at Zoo Schonbrunn on March 22, according to state run news agency Rastriya Samachar Samiti (RSS).

The Royal couple are scheduled to grace the launching of King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation (KMTNC) Austria Chapter on March 22.

The Crown Prince and the Crown Princess will also grace the presentation by the Institute of Applied Science Analysis on March 24.

On March 27, Crown Prince is scheduled to chair the meeting of the French Chapter of KMTNC, the RSS adds.

En route home, the Royal couple will visit the Republic of France and Dubai of the United Arab Emirates.

Their Royal Highnesses are scheduled to return home on 3rd April, 2006.

According to reports, Crown Prince Paras will gift a pair of rhinos to Austria, during the visit.

However, the Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ) on Saturday expressed concern over gifting of the rhinos to Austria, saying the gesture is not justifiable.

”Nepal ratified the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) in 1975. The convention prohibits any country from exporting and importing any rare species except for scientific experiments,” the NEFEJ added.