Gen Singh was supposed to participate in a regional two-day disaster management and counter terrorism seminar in Kathmandu from April 4.[break]
Nepal Army (NA), however, said that it has not been officially informed about the duration of the visit.
“We have been officially informed that he is arriving on April 4 and leaving on April 6. He is scheduled to address the concluding session of the seminar," said NA Spokesperson Ramindra Chhetri.
According to Zee News, last month also, the Indian defense ministry had cancelled Gen Singh´s four-day visit to Israel citing the political situation in Middle East.
“Army headquarters (In India) ruled out any possibility of the Army Chief canceling the visit," reported the news channel.
The relations between Indian Defense Minister AK Anthony and Singh have soured recently.
The Zee News states that after the General lost his battle on the age row in Indian Supreme Court in February, the Defense Ministry and the Army Chief were mired in a fresh controversy over Singh´s claim that he was offered IRs 140 million bribe and he had informed Defense Minister AK Antony about it.
NA to host regional conference on disaster response
After the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) level sports, Nepal Army (NA) is hosting a two-day regional seminar on disaster response and humanitarian assistance operations from April 4.
Soldiers from the USA and India will also participate in the seminar while the India Army chief VK Singh is scheduled to address the closing session of the seminar. NA Lieutenant General Nepal Bhusan Chand informed journalists about Singh´s scheduled visit. [break]
The seminar will discuss possible earthquake in Kathmandu and Koshi floods and discuss measures for relief and rescue operations.
Twelve senior officers from NA, six officials from Indian Army, six US Pacific Command senior officers and one officer each from Nepal Police and Armed Police Force will participate in the two-day-long regional conference. Similarly, 39 participants from Defense, Home, Finance and Information and Communication Ministry along with representatives from UN agencies and Red Cross Society will also participate in the conference.
Officers from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, People´s Liberation Army of China, and US Army and military attaches from five different countries will play role of observers.
Special NA outfit deployed at Tribhuvan International Airport will present a hijacked rescue demonstration on the concluding day of the conference. “Hijack is a big problem for security in this area, so NA has chosen this topic,” said NA Spokesperson Ramindra Chhetri.
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