Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Nepal after his counterpart Sher Bahadur Deuba invited him on the occasion of Buddha Jayanti.
Before his visit to Lumbini, PM Modi said that the visit is intended to “celebrate and further deepen the time-honoured linkages” between India and Nepal.
“Our ties with Nepal are unparalleled. The civilisational and people-to-people contacts between India and Nepal form the enduring edifice of our close relationship. My visit is intended to celebrate and further deepen these time-honoured linkages that have been fostered through centuries and recorded in our long history of inter-mingling,” he further said.
PM Modi along with Nepal PM Deuba will offer prayers at Maya Devi Temple to mark the occasion of Buddha Jayanti. The temple is said to be the birthplace of Gautam Buddha and is the significant site of worship in Lumbini. PM Modi will also lit up a butter lamp in front of the Ashoka Pillar and water the Bodhi tree gifted to him in 2014 during his Nepal visit.
Beside the event, PM Modi will also hold a discussion with Nepal PM Deuba to expand cooperation in areas of development and connectivity. After the meeting some memorandum of understanding (MoUs) are also likely to be exchanged for cooperation in the sectors of culture and education.
Nepal Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba will host a launch for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his delegation.
PM Modi will also lay the foundation stone for India’s International Centre for Buddhist Culture and Heritage in Lumbini.
At last, he will also take part in the celebrations of Buddha Jayanti organised by the Nepal government. There he will address the gathering of people from Nepal and India along with monks and Buddhist scholars.
