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Tuesday
June 25, 2002
1910 IST

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Fernandes meets Nepal king; assures
help to fight Maoists

India on Tuesday assured Nepal of all military help in combating Maoist rebels.

Defence Minister George Fernandes held out this assurance when he called on Nepal's King Gyanendra at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.

Fernandes briefed the king about the ongoing agreement between the two countries on training of Nepalese army officers and personnel in counter insurgency tactics at Indian Army institutions.

On Kathmandu's plea for supply of specialised equipment like helicopters, utility vehicles and mine-proof combat vehicles, Fernandes assured King Gyanendra that they would either be given at cost prices or reduced prices, defence sources said.

Under the ongoing military cooperation agreement concluded earlier this year, New Delhi had agreed to open the doors of its prestigious Counter-Insurgency School in Mizoram to train more Nepalese army personnel in anti-militancy operations.

Besides, India might despatch groups of counter-insurgency experts to Nepal to train its personnel.

Describing India as a "valued partner", the king sought enhanced cooperation between the two neighbours in science and technology and other diversified fields.

King Gyanendra, who held meetings with Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission K C Pant and Human Resources Development Minister Murli Manohar Joshi, said an economically vibrant and prosperous India was an asset not only to Nepal but also to the region as a whole.

During his parleys with Pant, they discussed planning-related issues in terrorist affected areas, an external affairs ministry spokesperson told reporters.

In his meeting with Joshi, the King said the Nepalese people had keenly following India's achievements in science and technology and industry as well as in social and cultural fields and wanted to benefit from India's experiences.

At a banquet hosted by President K R Narayanan on Monday night, the king had said that Nepal was ready to share with India the benefits of its abundant natural resources.

India, with its vast pool of technical manpower and expertise, could contribute significantly towards the development of industry, tourism and hydropower through investment in infrastructure and human resource development, he said.

He stressed that the two countries should broaden the base of their cooperation to allow more space for private sector initiatives and people-to-people cooperation to achieve greater development and harmony.

PTI

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