Indian prez confers CoAS Thapa with title of honorary general

KATHMANDU, Jan 13: Indian President Ram Nath Kovind conferred the title of honorary general of the Indian Army to Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) of Nepal Army, Purna Chandra Thapa, on Saturday. 

The Indian president conferred the insignia on CoAS Thapa amid a ceremony held at the President’s Office, New Delhi. 

Following the ceremony, the official Twitter handle of the Indian president tweeted: “President Kovind confers the Honorary Rank of General of the Indian Army on General Purna Chandra Thapa, Chief of Army Staff, Nepalese Army, for his military prowess and contribution to fostering Nepal’s long and friendly association with India.”

It has been a tradition between Nepal and India to award honorary titles to each other’s army chiefs since 1950. 

Chief of Army Staff Thapa left for India on a six-day visit to India on Friday at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Bipin Rawat. Thapa is scheduled to visit Indian Army’s South-western Command in Jaipur and the Central Command in Lucknow.

According to the army headquarters, CoAS Thapa will hold separate meetings with Indian Defense Minister Nirmala Sitaraman and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval during his stay in the Indian capital. Thapa’s entourage to India consists of seven people including his wife Deepa Thapa and the director of Nepal Army’s intelligence department, Major General Jhankar Bahadur Kadayat.