Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri laid the foundation stone for the proposed Pension Paying Office (PPO) in Butwal on Tuesday. It will be the third Indian PPO in Nepal, after Pokhara and Dharan. 

More than 6,000 ex-servicemen, family pensioners, civil dignitaries of the government of Nepal and officials of Defence Wing, Embassy of India were present in the function, the embassy said in a statement. 

The proposed PPO is being built on the plot land belonging to the District Soldiers Board (DSB), along with additional piece of land allotted by the government of Nepal in March this year. 

The new PPO will benefit approximately 45,000 Indian Army Gorkha pensioners and family pensioners in the region, in addition to the existing PPOs in Pokhara, Dharan and Military Pension Branch in Kathmandu, the statement said, adding that it will go a long way in serving the 1,26,000 ex-servicemen and family pensioners in Nepal. 

After an introductory speech by Col Man Raj Singh Mann, defence attaché of the Indian Embassy, Ambassador Puri addressed the gathering, giving out the benefits of the upcoming PPO.  

He also highlighted that this bond with the ex-servicemen would contribute immensely to the bonhomie and strength of India-Nepal relations.