Indian Army Chief arrives in Kathmandu

Kathmandu: Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat arrived in Kathmandu on Tuesday on a four-day official visit.

Rawat will be conferred the honorary rank of General of the Nepal Army by Nepal President Bidhya Devi Bhandari on Wednesday, defence officials said here.

It is a custom and tradition between the Indian and Nepali armies to confer this honour on each other's chiefs to signify close and special military-to-military ties.

General Rawat will also discuss bilateral military ties and other aspects of cooperation during his meeting with Nepali Army chief General Rajendra Chhetri.

Rawat is also scheduled to meet Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Defence Minister Bal Krishna Khand and will visit Pokhara, where India's biggest pension camp is located, and travel to Muktinath where Nepal Army runs a high-altitude military warfare training centre.

Other highlights of his visit will be issues related to purchasing military hardware and software for the Nepal Army.

Nepal makes almost all military and defence purchases from India, including helicopters.