The Indian Embassy here on Monday celebrated the 55th anniversary of Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Day in the Nepali capital.
Minister of Federal Affairs and General Administration of Nepal, Lalbabu Pandit, was present at the occasion as the Chief Guest.
Ambassador of India to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri noted that the ITEC programme has been pivotal in training senior officers from various Ministries and Departments of the Government of Nepal at India's premier institutions.
The programme has tremendously contributed towards skill up-gradation and human resources development in Nepal. About 150 ITEC alumni attended the celebrations.
The ITEC Programme was fully funded by the Government of India to share the country's developmental experience with 161 friendly countries, including Nepal.
The celebration was also attended by senior officers from the Government of Nepal, including Secretaries from Ministries and Departments, which mainly utilise various ITEC courses in training for human resources development of their officials. The training courses are in the fields of computers, engineering, information technology, journalism, banking, legislation, power, remote sensing, manpower research, education, empowerment of women, hydrology, law enforcement, business planning and promotion, accounts and finance, and other.
A number of Government of Nepal's institutions have benefitted from special tailor-made ITEC courses designed based on their specific needs. For example this year, 62 officials of Ministry of Finance of Nepal participated in a Public Finance Management course at the Institute of Government Accounts and Finance (INGAF), New Delhi.
Similarly, another special tailor-made ITEC course on Investigation and Control of Revenue Leakage was held in two batches for 50 Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI), Nepal officials at National Academy of Customs Excise, Indirect Taxes and Narcotics (NACIN), Faridabad in March 2019.
Similarly, 60 Nepali officials are being trained on Anti Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism at NACIN. In addition, a total of 34 Nepali water resources experts are pursuing their M. Tech in the fields of irrigation water management, Hydrology, Alternative Energy and water resources development at the prestigious IIT, Roorkee.
Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre (SVCC) at the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu presented an endearing cultural performance on the occasion.
( With inputs from ANI )