Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephonic conversation with the newly-appointed Nepalese Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba on Monday. The call has established a communication line between Mr. Modi and Mr. Deuba, who won a vote of confidence in the House of Representatives on Sunday night.
“Spoke with Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba to convey my congratulations and best wishes. We will work together to further enhance the wide-ranging cooperation between India and Nepal, including in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mr. Modi in a social media message after the conversation.
Mr. Deuba was appointed as Prime Minister on July 12 by a Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court of Nepal, which observed that his predecessor, K.P. Sharma Oli, had violated constitutional norms and had to step down.
Mr. Modi had congratulated Mr. Deuba after he won the vote of confidence. In a message to Mr. Deuba, he said both sides should work on “all sectors”.
The Ministry of External Affairs said the two leaders focused primarily on battling the pandemic.
Mr. Oli had been criticised for his alleged failure to contain COVID-19, which has left at least 9582 people dead.
Vaccine challenge
Nepal’s main challenge is its inability to access COVID-19 vaccine, for which it had initially depended on the Serum Institute of India. Supply of Indian vaccines was interrupted during March-May when the second wave peaked in India. Subsequently, the U.S. stepped up efforts and Nepal will receive 1.5 million vaccine doses from it.
Bilateral interaction turned cold last year owing to the Kalapani territorial dispute and top- level visits were blocked because of the pandemic and diplomatic spat. However, in January last, Oli’s Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali visited India.
Mr. Deuba has appointed a five-member Cabinet but he is yet to appoint a foreign minister.
