India-Nepal Sign MoUs For 8 Projects Worth Around ₹50 Crore

India and Nepal have signed MoUs for eight development projects with a combined estimated cost of NPR 803 million, or around ₹50.2 crore, with India providing grant assistance for the projects. The agreements cover health, education and agriculture and will be carried out through local authorities and government institutions in Nepal.

The MoUs were signed in Kathmandu on August 11 between the Embassy of India, Nepal’s Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives, Federal Affairs and General Administration, and the agencies responsible for the projects. Nepal’s currency is fixed at NPR 1.60 to ₹1, putting NPR 803 million at about ₹50.2 crore.

The eight projects include the digitalisation of B.P. Koirala Institute of Health and Sciences in Dharan, Sunsari, a Krishi Utpadan Sankalan Tatha Bikri Kendra in Bhojpur and a Municipal Agricultural and Livestock Centre in Dhading.

The package also includes a building for Belbari Multiple Campus in Morang, a 10-bed hospital in Dailekh, an Agriculture Promotion Centre in Humla, a cold store in Syangja and a 15-bed hospital building in Barju, Sunsari.

The projects are part of India’s High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDPs) programme, which has been running in Nepal since 2003. India has undertaken 605 HICDPs across Nepal, including the latest eight. Of these, 512 have been completed, while the others are at different stages of implementation. Completed projects cover health, education, agriculture, drinking water, connectivity, sanitation and public facilities.

The programme has reached communities across all seven provinces of Nepal. The Indian Embassy said HICDPs are “identified and proposed primarily by Nepal’s local governments”, so they are based on local needs and priorities. Another 107 projects span multiple districts.

India has also supported Nepal’s health and education sectors by gifting 1,049 ambulances and 381 school buses. The ambulances cover all 77 districts, while the school buses serve institutions in 65 districts, including remote and underserved areas.