Chief of Indian Army General Manoj Pande arrived on Sunday evening to receive the honorary Chief of Army Staff status of Nepal Army.

He arrived in Kathmandu with a five-member team for a five-day visit at the official invitation of the Nepal Army Chief Prabhu Ram Sharma.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari will confer him the title of Nepal Army chief on Monday .

“While the main objective of his (Pande’s) visit is to receive the title of the honorary chief of the Nepal Army, he will also engage in bilateral talks,” Brigadier General Narayan Silwal, army spokesperson, told the Post.

Pande will start his official engagements by offering homage to the Nepal Army soldiers, who lost their lives in the course of their duties, and he will also inspect the parade to be held in his honour.

There is a long-standing tradition between the defence forces between Nepal and India to confer the title of honorary Chief of the Army Staffs of Nepal Army to the chief of Indian Army and vice-versa.

According to the Directorate of the Public Relations of Nepal Army, Pande will also hold bilateral talks with General Sharma and hand over the assistance from the Indian Army to Nepal Army.

Silwal said Pande arrived with non-lethal equipment and vehicles needed for bomb disposal, and trained horses.

“The total assistance is worth around Rs220 million of which 60 percent will be in grants while the Nepal government will pay 40 percent of the cost,” he told the Post.

The Indian Army chief will also pay a courtesy call on President Bhandari, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and who also is a charge of Defence Ministry. Khand.

Holding interactions with the students of Army Command and Staff College and visiting the Mid-Western Command Headquarters are also part of his itinerary.

The Pande-led five-member team will return on Thursday.