Indian Army Chief Narwane To Receive Honorary Rank Of General Of Nepali Army Next Month

New Delhi : Indian Army Chief General MM Narwane will visit Nepal in the first week of November. During this high-level visit, the Government of Nepal will honor General Narwane by giving him the honorary rank of ‘General of the Nepal Army’. This traditional honor, given as a recognition of the strong relationship between the armies of the two countries, will be given by Nepali President Vidya Devi Bhandari to General Narwane in a ceremony.

This honor was introduced in 1950. India has also been honoring the Nepal Army Chief by honorary rank of ‘General of Indian Army’. Nepal’s decision to award this honor under the old tradition is considered to be extremely important in recent months between the two neighboring countries over the border disputes.

Officials said the Chief of Army Staff would visit Nepal early next month. Tour dates have not been set yet. On the tour of Nepal, General Narwane will hold important talks with the Army Chief General Purna Chandra Thapa and several other top officials of the Nepalese Army including Defense Minister Ishwar Pokharel. On this tour, efforts will be made to further strengthen defense cooperation between the two countries.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Nepalese Army in Kathmandu also confirmed General Narwane’s visit, saying it was to take place on February 3, but was postponed due to the Coronavirus lockdown in both countries.

Nepal had objected to the inauguration of an 80-km-long strategically-important road connecting the Lipulekh Pass to Dharchula by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh on 8 May. Nepal had claimed that this road made to go to Kailash Mansarovar is passing through its border. However, India rejected the claim that the road was within the Indian border.

Nepal was upset with General Narwane’s statement too
Nepal was angered by a statement by General Narwane in the midst of the ongoing dispute between the two countries. General Narvane, expressing the possibility of China being behind the whole controversy, said that there were several reasons to believe that ‘someone else’ was behind Nepal’s objection on the matter of building the road.