S Jaishankar to visit Nepal on second leg of 'SAARC yatra'

KATHMANDU: Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar will visit Nepal next week on the second leg of his 'SAARC yatra' aimed at firming up India's ties with members of the grouping while reviewing regional and bilateral cooperation.

He will arrive in Nepal on April 2 on a three-day visit during which he will hold talks with the country's top leadership.

The visit also comes as a follow up to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's trip here in November last year to attend the 18th SAARC Summit, the Indian Embassy's Spokesperson said.

During the visit, Jaishankar is scheduled to meet President Rambaran Yadav, Prime Minister Sushil Koirala, Foreign Minister Mahendra Pandey and top political leaders of Nepal.

He will also meet his Nepalese counterpart Shanker Das Bairagi and discuss key issues.

India's Ambassador to Nepal Ranjit Rae yesterday called on Foreign Minister Pandey and discussed matters to be taken up by both sides during the bilateral meeting next week.

The Foreign Secretary will meet top leaders of major political parties including Maoist chief Prachanda and prominent Madhesi leaders to discuss the current political situation in the country.

Jaishankar's visit to Nepal comes at a time when the country is confronted with fluid political situation due to divergent views of major political parties about the key issues of Constitution drafting.

Jaishankar completed the first leg of his 'SAARC Yatra' earlier this month when he visited Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan.