Kathmandu, Dec 12: During his official visit to India, Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) Ashok Raj Sigdel was conferred the honorary rank of General of the Indian Army by President of India, Mrs Droupadi Murmu.
The special investiture ceremony took place today at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, where President Murmu honored CoAS Sigdel with the honorary insignia, according to the Directorate of Public Relations and Information of the Nepal Army.
This unique tradition symbolizes the unparalleled cultural, religious, historical, and friendly military ties between Nepal and India. As part of this tradition, the Chief of the Nepali Army is conferred the honorary General rank of the Indian Army, while the Chief of the Indian Army is similarly honored by the Nepali Army.
The practice has been in place since 1950. Earlier, on Mangsir 6, President Ram Chandra Paudel conferred the honorary General insignia of the Nepali Army to Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi.
CoAS Sigdel also held a courtesy meeting with Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh today. Additionally, he participated in a tree-planting ceremony on the premises of the Indian Army Headquarters, the Directorate reported.
