President Bidhya Devi Bhandari is set to visit India from May 9 on her first official foreign trip after assuming the office of the head of state in October last year. 

Initially she had shown interest to take part in the Simhastha Kumbh Mela in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, and accordingly it was communicated to the Indian side. According to officials, the Indian side, however, expressed its desire to host her in New Delhi first and make her personal-cum-religious visit an official one. 

There could be two reasons for making President Bhandari’s India visit official. Firstly, Bhandari is the first female President of Nepal and second she became the President after Nepal adopted a new constitution through the Constituent Assembly. 

According to sources, President Bhandari will first reach the Indian capital New Delhi on May 9 and hold meetings with senior Indian officials and leaders the following day. In New Delhi, President Bhandari will meet her Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee on May 10 at the President’s Office, according to the preliminary itinerary. On the same day, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and other Indian leaders will pay courtesy calls on President Bhandari.

After completing meetings and engagements in New Delhi, she will fly to Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, to take part in the Simhastha Kumbh Mela. The details of the visit, size of the delegation and other preparations are yet to be worked out, said officials.

Former president Ram Baran Yadav had paid two official visits and one state visit to India.