Indian Army chief General Dhiraj Seth arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday for a four-day visit at the invitation of Nepal’s Chief of the Army Staff General Ashok Sigdel.

Seth arrived at Tribhuvan International Airport at 4:15pm on an Air India flight. Senior Nepali Army officials were at the airport to receive him.

According to Nepali Army officials, during his stay, Seth is most likely to hold meetings with Prime Minister Balendra Shah, who also oversees the Defence Ministry, and General Sigdel, among other senior officials.

President Ramchandra Paudel, who is also the supreme commander of the Nepali Army, is scheduled to confer on Seth the honorary rank of General of the Nepali Army at a special ceremony at the President’s Office on Monday, said Brigadier General Rajaram Basnet, spokesperson for the Nepali Army.

Nepal and India have a longstanding tradition of conferring the honorary rank of general on each other’s army chiefs. The practice began in 1950 and is regarded by both sides as a symbol of the close and mutually respectful ties between the two countries.

Under the tradition, Nepal’s army chief is conferred the honorary rank of General of the Indian Army, while the Indian Army chief receives the honorary rank of General of the Nepali Army.

Seth, who took charge as Indian Army chief on June 30, will also attend other events organised by the Nepali Army during his visit.

Seth is the first senior Indian official to visit Nepal since the formation of the Balendra Shah government on March 27. Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had earlier been scheduled to visit Kathmandu, but his trip was postponed over protocol-related issues.

General Sigdel was conferred the honorary rank of General of the Indian Army by Indian President Droupadi Murmu in December 2024.