On the sidelines of Japanese Emperor Naruhito’s enthronement ceremony, Bhandari met with her Indian counterpart Ramnath Kovind on October 22, 2019.

According to officials, President Bhandari extended an invitation to Kovind for a Nepal visit. The latter accepted the invitation and both leaders decided to finalize dates for the same.

Speaking further, Bhandari and Kovind expressed their satisfaction on Nepal-India bilateral relations and agreed to deepen the multifaceted ties.

The two Presidents also expressed their happiness on the progress of India-funded projects in Nepal. “They also noted the early completion of the cross-border petroleum pipeline saying that it was an exemplary project,” said Shankar Das Bairagi, Foreign Affairs Secretary.

Kovind was also grateful to Nepal for issuing three commemorative coins on Guru Nanak’s birth anniversary and Nepal KP Sharma Oli’s contributory article to a book on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti.

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The Jayanagar-Kurtha railway link will link Nepal to India across a 34 km stretch, carrying both passenger and freight.

Even though the first train will carry only passengers, Nepal proposed that the aforementioned railway link be opened for transport of passengers and freight

An immigration check-post may be established at the Indian side, managed by the Indian Bureau of Immigration or the State Government.

However, no Indian or Nepalese nationals crossing travelling the stretch will require a visa.

Nepali authorities informed the Indian railways that the section will be functional with four trips and between 8-16 hour shifts.

Additionally, the Indian side will lease coaches, rakes, rolling stock and others to the Himalayan nation for the transport of cargo across the line.

5.5 Billion Project
The Jayanagar-Kurtha railway line is being established at a cost of INR 5.5 billion and in three phases.

The first phase involves the construction of a 34-km segment between Jayanagar and Kurtha, followed by the second phase including an 18-km segment between Kurtha-Bhangaha in Mahottari district and third one involving a 17-km segment from Bhangaha to Bardibas.

Interestingly, only three kilometers of the section is in the Indian territory.

Background
The original 52-km Jayanagar-Kurtha line was first built during the British rule to transport logs from Mahottari forests to India.

Nepal and India agreed on the construction of four railway lines including Jayanagar-Kurtha and Raxaul-Kathmandu

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According to Nepal Department of Drug Administration (DDA), the country consumes drugs worth Rs 36 billion with Kathmandu Valley alone accounting 50 percent of drugs, annually. These figures include both imported and home-bound drugs and medicines.

Treatment for chronic diseases and presence of improvised healthcare in the Valley draws a majority of the country’s population to this side of Nepal.

Some Interesting Figures:

• According to DDA Director General Narayan Dhakal, 45 types of medicines are manufactured in Nepal while the remaining are imported from India and third-world countries
• NCDA General Secretary Hari Prasad Bidari reveals that the 70 billion market share includes prices of drugs raw materials and surgical equipment
• According to Nepal Medicine Importers Association (MIA) General Secretary Pawan Acharya says, Nepal imports drugs worth Rs 26 billion annually
• 80-90 percent of drugs in Nepal are imported from Indian and third-world countries
• According to DDA, 21,000 Nepali pharmacies have been registered with the governing body while 5,000 remain unregistered
• Currently, only 70 of the 90 registered pharmaceuticals in Nepal offer human drugs
• There has been a continuous rise in number of Nepalis using drugs without prescription

Dhakal states that DDA has been continuously monitoring the overall drug market with quality as a key metric.

Despite the Rs 70 billion drug market, its alarming that Nepal majorly depends on drug imports from other countries and on Kathmandu Valley alone for better treatment and healthcare facilities.

Hence, the country has a long way to go in attaining self-sufficiency in drug supply and manufacture to ensure quality healthcare for its citizens.

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This meet was used by both parties to identify the roadblocks that hinder project implementation.

According to the Nepal Foreign Affairs Ministry, the status of all ongoing Indo-Nepal projects was discussed.

The meeting stressed on completion of all the economic and development projects at the earliest, by finding solutions to difficulties experienced during implementation of various projects.

Cross-border rail projects, Arun-III Hydropower project and the Terai Roads project are some of the projects, as per the update by the Indian Embassy.

The two bodies discussed the measures for early completion of the project within the provided TAT and expressed commitment for smooth execution of projects.

Nepal Foreign Secretary Shankar Das Bairagi and Indian Ambassador Manjeev Singh Puri represented both countries at the meeting.

The latest decision comes as a result of the discussions made on the Nepal-India Oversight Mechanism to address concerns over ongoing bilateral projects implementation within stipulated time frames, taking during former Nepal PM Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s state visit to India in September 2016.

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