Newly appointed Indian Ambassador Kwatra arrives in Kathmandu

KATHMANDU, March 1: Newly appointed Ambassador of India to Nepal Vinay Mohan Kwatra has arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday.

He was serving as the ambassador to France before he was handed the Nepal job on Jan 15, two weeks after Manjeev Singh Puri departed Kathmandu ending his three-year tenure.

He will assume office later this week after presenting his credentials to President Bidya Devi Bhandari.

Kwatra is a member of the Indian Foreign Service with experience since 1988 in a range of assignments.

A diploma in International Relations, he served as Third Secretary and then Second Secretary in the Permanent Mission of India in Geneva until 1993, where he handled work relating to the UN specialized agencies, as also the Human Rights Commission. 

He also served as a desk officer at the headquarters dealing with the United Nations, and subsequently in the Diplomatic Missions in South Africa and Uzbekistan between 1993 and 2003. 

He then served as Counselor and later as the Deputy Chief of Mission in the Embassy of India, Beijing, China till 2006. 

He represented India at the SAARC Secretariat in Nepal as head of the Trade, Economy and Finance Bureau between 2006 and 2010.

From May 2010 till July 2013, he served as Minister (Commerce) in the Embassy of India, Washington.

Between July 2013 and October 2015, Mr. Kwatra headed the Policy Planning & Research Division of the Ministry of External Affairs and later served as the head of Americas Division in the Foreign Ministry where he dealt with India’s relations with the United States and Canada. 

From October 2015 till August 2017, Mr. Kwatra served as a Joint Secretary in the office of the Prime Minister of India.