Kathmandu, 27 April (H.S.): India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri is scheduled to visit Nepal on May 11 and 12 for a two‑day official trip that will mark the first high‑level diplomatic outreach from New Delhi to the new government led by Prime Minister Balendra “Balen” Shah. The visit, invited by Nepal’s Foreign Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai, aims to align priorities between the two neighbours ahead of upcoming ministerial and prime‑minister‑level meetings.

The itinerary is being worked out through informal consultations between the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu and the Nepal Embassy in New Delhi, with the core objective of better understanding the new Kathmandu administration’s priorities and India’s expectations.

Earlier, in Mauritius, during the ninth Indian Ocean Conference, Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal and Indian External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar had agreed that both sides should first clarify their respective priorities before holding major bilateral summits. Misri’s visit is seen as a direct follow‑up to that understanding.

During a meeting with Nepali journalists in New Delhi, Misri confirmed that he would be travelling to Kathmandu “very soon,” and officials suggest his talks will also prepare the ground for possible high‑level exchanges, including the prospect of a letter of invitation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Prime Minister Shah to visit India.

According to officials, Misri is expected to discuss the new government’s priorities and how they align with India’s expectations, covering sectors such as security, water resources, irrigation, border management, trade, commerce and agriculture. India and Nepal already have around three dozen bilateral mechanisms operating from the district level up to the foreign‑minister and prime‑minister tiers, though not all of them have met regularly in recent years.

Officials on both sides say that the Kathmandu visit will help re‑energise these mechanisms and identify new areas of cooperation, especially where project‑related bottlenecks have slowed progress. Dozens of India‑supported projects are currently underway in Nepal, including in infrastructure, energy and connectivity; some have advanced well, while others are lagging behind planned timelines.

The visit is also designed to feed into a broader diplomatic sequence. After Misri returns to New Delhi, senior political leadership in India is expected to review Nepal’s stated priorities, which will help shape the agenda for upcoming high‑level visits, including the planned trip of Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal to India. Khanal is scheduled to attend the India‑Africa Forum Summit (IAFS‑4) in New Delhi in late May 2026, an event that will bring together leaders from across Africa as well as key partners such as Nepal.

Taken together, the sequence—from Mauritius talks to Misri’s Kathmandu visit and the India‑Africa summit—reflects India’s effort to deepen engagement with Nepal’s new leadership while ensuring that bilateral cooperation becomes more visible, predictable and mutually beneficial for both sides.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar