Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle has sought Indian support for the reconstruction and rebuilding of properties and infrastructure destroyed by last month’s Bhotekoshi floods. 

During a meeting with his Indian counterpart, Nirmala Sitharaman, on Thursday evening, Wagle said Nepal expected significant assistance from India for the reconstruction effort, an official present in the meeting told the Post.

Although Wagle sought a grant for reconstruction, he did not specify an amount. Sitharaman responded positively to the request, saying India would assess Nepal’s needs once the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment was completed before deciding on the extent of its support.

“We will take a decision once you are done with Post-Disaster Needs Assessment, ” Sitharaman told Wagle as per the official.

Wagle and Sitharaman also discussed how to negotiate and finalise the line of credits that India offered to Nepal some 10 years back. India had announced Rs100 billion for reconstruction and rebuilding of the damaged infrastructure after the 2015 earthquake. Out of that pledged amount, Rs 25 billion was grant while Rs75 billion was soft loan to be released through the Exim Bank of India.

However, Nepal could not use the loan amount following different conditions from the Indian side. The issue was also discussed during Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal’s visit to India in May where he proposed using that soft loan in the energy sector.

Wagle is on a three-day visit to the Indian capital at Sitharaman’s invitation, marking his first foreign trip since taking office and his first official visit to India as finance minister.

During the meeting on Thursday, Sitharaman conveyed condolences for the lives lost in the floods and assured continued Indian support for Nepal’s recovery, according to a statement from India’s Ministry of Finance. Wagle, in turn, thanked India for the relief supplies and technical support extended during the rescue and relief operations.

“The discussions covered strengthening of bilateral economic ties in various areas, as well as initiatives to enhance connectivity for deepening of trade, investments and people-to-people exchanges,” India's Ministry of Finance said in a statement.

Both sides underscored the importance of further building the trade and economic partnership between the two countries, the statement added. India’s foreign secretary and the secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs also attended the meeting.

Sources told the Post that Wagle, noting India’s record as the first responder in every crisis Nepal has faced, sought Indian support for reconstruction along the Bhotekoshi river corridor. Sitharaman assured that India would extend all possible assistance during the rebuilding phase.

To determine the scale of the damage, the government has commissioned a post-disaster needs assessment, with a final report expected within four weeks.

In a separate statement, the Nepali Embassy in New Delhi called the talks comprehensive, saying they covered post-flood reconstruction as well as trade, investment, energy and connectivity—with the broader goal of strengthening the long-standing economic partnership between the two countries.

Before leaving for Delhi, Wagle said Nepal was not seeking a fixed sum from India, pointing instead to the scale of support New Delhi provided after the 2015 earthquake.

“We are not seeking a specific amount from India at this moment, but given the way India supported us during the 2015 earthquake, we expect a similar kind of generosity from them,” Wagle told the Post on Wednesday.

At the 2015 International Conference on Nepal's Reconstruction, India had pledged $1 billion for rebuilding—a quarter as grants and the rest as a concessional loan. Much of that loan remains unused, and Nepal now wants to redirect it towards the energy sector.

A committee formed by the government will determine reconstruction and rehabilitation needs for Rasuwa and Nuwakot, the two districts hit hardest by the floods. Once the assessment is complete, the government plans to either convene a donor conference or approach friendly countries, the donor community and charitable organisations individually. The assistance sought would also go toward building resilient infrastructure along the Bhotekoshi river to address future climate risks.

The floods have also forced Nepal to revise its earlier requests to India. During a recent visit, Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal had proposed that India provide $500 million in grants and another $500 million in concessional loans for infrastructure, particularly roads and energy. That proposal is now under review.

“Following the Bhotekoshi  floods, the situation has changed, and the proposal submitted by Foreign Minister Khanal during his India visit will have to be reconsidered,” a senior Foreign Ministry official told the Post. “In the changed context, the priority has shifted towards reconstruction and rebuilding.”

Wagle’s three-day visit also includes three policy dialogues—on diplomacy, business and development policy.

On Friday morning, he will be chief guest at a diplomatic roundtable at the India International Centre, hosted by former Indian foreign secretary Shyam Saran, who also served as India’s ambassador to Nepal. About 15 senior Indian diplomats are expected to attend the event, including former foreign secretary and national security adviser Shivshankar Menon. The discussion will range beyond Nepal-India relations to regional and global diplomatic issues.

Wagle will then meet External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, with connectivity, trade, transit, business cooperation and post-disaster support expected on the agenda. That evening, he will attend a reception hosted by Jawed Ashraf, chairman of the India Trade Promotion Organisation.

On Saturday morning, Wagle will address a business roundtable organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry and led by ITC chairman and managing director Sanjiv Puri. During the event, Wagle plans to seek greater Indian investment in Nepal and brief business leaders on recent legislative changes aimed at easing investment and business operations. Later that day, Wagle will be chief guest at a development policy discussion hosted by the Delhi School of Economics, moderated by Professor Ram Singh.

“These are three rare occasions when I am going to address different Indian policy-making communities,” Wagle told the Post ahead of his visit, adding that the dialogues would help India understand the new situation and the new government in Nepal.