• The Ministry of External Affairs and ISRO’s commercial arm NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) signed an agreement  to grant assistance for the launching of the Nepal-built Munal satellite.

• Munal is an indigenous satellite developed in Nepal under the aegis of the Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST).

• Antarikchya Pratishan Nepal (APN), a Nepalese space startup, has assisted Nepalese students in the design and fabrication of this satellite. 

• The satellite aims to build a vegetation density database of the Earth’s surface.

• This satellite is expected to be launched soon on NSIL’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.

The objectives of MUNAL are divided into two parts:

Primary Objectives:

i) To conduct In-house design, build, test, and launch of Nepal’s first high school CubeSat. 

ii) To demonstrate novel SSoC-based COM/OBC designed in-house. 

iii) To continue two Missions of NepaliSat-1 — Store & Forward (S&F) and Imaging Mission. 

Secondary Objectives:

i) To build a vegetation density database of the Earth’s surface. 

ii) To implement image segmentation for landmass identification using Artificial Intelligence (Machine Learning) to increase good image downlink efficiency. 

Major areas of cooperation between India and Nepal

• As close neighbours, India and Nepal share a unique relationship of friendship and cooperation characterised by open borders and deep-rooted people-to-people contacts of kinship and culture.

• Nepal has an area of 147,181 sq km and a population of 29 million. 

• It shares a border of over 1,850 kms in the east, south and west with five Indian States — Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand — and in the north with the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China.

• The India-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1950 forms the bedrock of the special relations that exist between India and Nepal.

• India and Nepal share a robust relationship, with India being Nepal’s largest trade partner and primary source of foreign investments. 

• India facilitates nearly all of Nepal’s third-country trade, accounting for two-thirds of Nepal’s merchandise trade and one-third of its trade in services.

Recent developments:

• Trade and Transit: India and Nepal have recently agreed to review the Treaty of Transit and the Treaty of Trade, aiming to amend existing agreements, enhance investment, harmonize standards, and develop synchronised trade infrastructure. 

• Defence Cooperation: India has supported the modernisation of the Nepal Army by supplying equipment and offering training. The joint military exercise ‘Surya Kiran’ is held alternately in India and Nepal, with the 2023 edition taking place in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand. 

• Cultural Cooperation: In December 2023, the India-Nepal Cultural Festival, focusing on Buddhism, was inaugurated in Lumbini, showcasing the rich cultural heritage shared between the two nations. 

• Water Sharing: The Koshi Agreement, Gandak Agreement, and Mahakali Treaty form the basis of India-Nepal cooperation in water resources, ensuring fair utilisation of shared rivers.

• Connectivity: India is enhancing connectivity with Nepal by upgrading roads in the Terai area, establishing cross-border rail links, and setting up Integrated Check Posts at strategic locations. In 2021, India also exported approximately 2,200 MUs of electricity to Nepal.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)