The award recipients included students from 50 Nepali districts, pursuing undergraduate courses in MBBS, BDS, BE, BSc, BBA and BCom across various Nepali institutions, locally.

The award recipients included 45 percent of girls and 8 percent of differently-abled students, the Indian Embassy said in an official release.

Speaking on the occasion, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri congratulated the students and urged them to focus on socio-economic development of Nepal and areas that boost Indo-Nepal relations.

Indo-Nepal Golden Jubilee Scholarship Scheme

Indian Government introduced this scheme in 2002 marking the 50 years of India-Nepal Economic Cooperation, and as a mark of India’s support to human resources and socio-economic development of Nepal.

From 50 at the start, the number of Nepali award recipients increased to around 100 students by and continued to remain 200 since 2012.

Under the scheme, MBBS/BDS student receives NPR 4000/- per month for five years, while a BE student will get NPR 4000/- per month for four years and a students of other undergraduate courses will receive NPR 3000/- per month for three years.

Till date, the scheme has benefited around 2,350 students from 77 Nepali districts, the Embassy said in its release.

Besides, the Indian Government also provides around 3000 scholarships to aspiring students in various other fields such as medical, veterinary sciences, science, agriculture, dental science, pharmacology, arts, commerce, engineering, computer science and nursing across various Nepali institutions.

Women in Higher Education On Rise in Nepal

Meanwhile, the number of women students in higher education are growing as a result of rise in enrolment of girls in schools, a senior Nepali official said on March 12, 2019.

Speaking at the ongoing 63^rd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW-63) of UN, president of Women and Social Committee of Nepal Niru Devi Pal recalled Nepal’s achievements in advancement of women rights through the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action of 1995, among other initiatives.

She emphasized that the girl empowerment made by Nepal has changed the dynamics of human resources in Nepali public sector, placing women in key decision-making positions.

Stating that many Nepali women have moved away from traditional practices, Devi said that there has been a gradual progress in women presence across politics, education, media, health, among other sectors.

She also highlighted on the country’s gender-responsive budgets adoption of gender-responsive monitoring and evaluation mechanisms.

In Conclusion

Hope more such meritorious programs by government bodies and local community groups will further the development of Nepali education sector, contributing to skill development.

Stay tuned for more interesting updates about Nepal and Nepalis!

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With this decision, India’s financial aid to Nepal for the new financial year steps up to Rs 650 crore, a 73 percent rise over the previous year, wherein, the allocation was Rs 375 crore.

Besides Nepal, India has also decided to give financial aid of Rs 1,813 crore to Bhutan for the coming financial year, the highest among other recipient nations receiving aid from India for FY 2018-19.

“India and Nepal have close civilizational and cultural ties, and a wide-ranging and expanding partnership across diverse sectors, which stand firmly on their own. The Indian Government is committed to advancing its development partnership to Nepal as per their priorities,” said the Indian Parliamentary Committee report on External Affairs.

The report further noted that the allocation of funds to both the countries also reflects India’s commitment to support both the countries towards expediting the development of ongoing projects, among other activities in coordination with the respective governments.

This news gains significance in the light of Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s likely visit to India in the first week of April 2018.

Though a formal announcement in this regard is yet to be made, Oli’s three-day maiden trip to India after assuming office is being considered key to the foreign relations between the two countries in view of the formation of Communist-led government in Nepal.

India For a Lifeline Project with Nepal

Meanwhile, in another update indicating strong Indo-Nepal diplomatic ties, India is seeking Nepal’s help for the revival of its Yamuna River to address water concerns in the Indian capital Delhi.

This move is part of Indian PM Narendra Modi’s trans-country river-linking project that is aimed at interlinking 31 rivers and divert the excess water quantity to the arid areas.

Through this project, India is looking at bringing in water from Sharda River or Mahakali River on the Indo-Nepal border to Yamuna near Delhi.

“The proposal has been cleared by a committee of secretaries and a request has been sent to the MEA (ministry of external affairs) to initiate a dialogue with Nepal,” said Indian Secretary for Water Resources UP Singh.

The committee of secretaries has actually met Nepal to negotiate with Nepal on the 540-MW capacity Pancheshwar multi-purpose hydropower project. 

The proposed Shard-Yamuna project is being considered as a lifeline project for Yamuna and is expected to benefit four Indian States: UP, Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan.

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The two-week-long journey that began on December 14, 2017, involving elderly Nepali citizens, is a joint initiative of the Nepal Bharat Friendship Society and the Indian Mission in Nepal.

     The two-week-long journey began on December 14, 2017

As part of the journey, the pilgrims will travel around India and Nepal.

“India has age old relations with Nepal which includes the religious, social and the cultural relations. The culture and the other things are similar between the two sides. Many things in Nepal such as Shraddha (commemorating the deceased ones) do not get completed without the pilgrimage tour in India,” says Prem Lashkery, President of Nepal Bharat Friendship Society.

Entering India through Nepal’s Birgunj, the pilgrims will cover Indian places such as Harihar Kshetra, PunPun, Gaya, Bodh Gaya, Kashi Bishow Nath, Bindhabasini, Chitra Kut, Allahabad, Prayag, Ayodhya Ram Janma Bhumi, Gorakh Nath, Tribeni and Devghat before returning to Kathmandu.

Meanwhile, Bidur KC , a pilgrim traveling with the team, feels that this tour will strengthen the Nepal-India relationship.

“This also shows that the relation between the countries is not confined to political level only, but very good relation exists in the religious sector too,” he added.

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On the occasion of its 71^st Independence Day, India offered 30 ambulances and six buses to various hospitals, charitable trusts and educational institutions located in various districts of Nepal, on August 15, 2017.

India also gifted books to around 61 libraries and various educational institutions across Nepal, informed an official release by the Embassy.

In a function organized at Indian Embassy, Kathmandu to mark Indian Independence Day, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri also distributed cheques of Rs 57 million (Nepali Rupees) and blankets to 15 widows and wards of deceased soldiers of Indian armed forces.

This move by India to give ambulances to Nepal will add to the government’s efforts towards providing relief measures to the flood victims.

At the event, the students of Indian Culture Centre, Kendriya Vidyalaya and Modern Indian School sang patriotic songs. The event also witnessed a musical performance by Indian Music Band Astitva and the ceremony concluded with a performance by the Nepal Army Band.

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