Nepal

Pokhara Metropolis officials have shown keen interest to forge ties and air connectivities with various Indian cities. 

With serene lakes, hills and snowcapped mountains in the backdrop, Pokhara valley and its surrounding areas are among the most favoured tourism destinations in Nepal.

A meeting was held between the Mayor of Pokhara Metropolitan City (PMC) Dhan Raj Acharya and the Ambassador of India to Nepal Naveen Srivastava on Sunday evening.

They discussed a range of issues, including expansion of sister city relations between Pokhara and various Indian cities, development of tourism infrastructure, and operation of regular flights between Pokhara and various Indian cities.

Mayor Acharya expressed his wish to link Pokhara with various cities of India including Banaras via regular flights as the Pokhara Regional International Airport becomes ready for operation. 

He also urged the Indian ambassador to take initiation for creating a conducive environment for the same in the southern neighbour. 

Acharya further said that he would take initiatives through the government of Nepal toward that end while expressing gratitude towards India for the assistance it has provided for the development and construction works in Pokhara and its surrounding areas. 

Acharya said that they are also expecting their support in big infrastructure plans such as declaring Pokhara as the tourism capital.

For his part, the Indian ambassador appreciated the enchanting natural beauty of Pokhara and pledged India's cooperation in the development of infrastructure in Pokhara in collaboration with the government of Nepal. 

Ambassador Srivastava said that India has collaborated with Nepal in various bilateral projects and also established a 'pension camp' - for ex-Gorkha servicemen who served with the Indian Army - in Pokhara, attaching importance to the lake city

The Indian ambassador further added that they wanted to provide support in any one 'good' project in Pokhara and that India would move ahead in coordination with the government of Nepal.

(With inputs from RSS)