"He's now presiding over the poorest government in Asia, but he ran the richest city in Nepal," said Dr Swarnim Wagle, Minister of Finance, Nepal on Prime Minister Balen Shah.

"That's where we're trying to open up. Be very liberal, attract investment, and create a level playing field for young entrepreneurs, and to do all that, you need not be associated with any political party. You don't need your uncle to be the minister. You can just pursue your dreams, and the laws of the land will be there," said Dr Swarnim Wagle, Minister of Finance, Nepal.

"We wish well for Pakistan. I know Pakistani people are nice. They want good relations with India. But the point is, the generals use terrorism as an instrument of state policy," said Ravi Shankar Prasad, Member of Parliament.

"The world has changed, and let us appreciate and respect the urge of younger people. This is how I feel," said Ravi Shankar Prasad, Member of Parliament.

"The best days of India-Nepal relations are yet to come," said Dr Nishchal N Pandey, Director, Centre for South Asian Studies, Kathmandu. 

"Keep up the dialogue at all levels," said Manjeev Singh Puri, Former Ambassador of India to Nepal.

"Our policy for Nepal is continuity and consistency," said Dr Vijay Chauthaiwale, In-Charge of Foreign Affairs, BJP, India.

"PM Modi's message to our PM Balen Shah after the flood reflects the closeness both countries have," said Major General Binoj Basnyat (Retired), Strategic Analyst & Former Offcer of Nepali Army. 

"The young generation of Nepal have high hopes from the new government," said Acharya Balkrishna, Managing Director, Patanjali Ayurved.

"I am a true believer of critical thinking," said Rajesh Hamal, actor & TV show host. 

"Born in Nepal, it travelled the world without a passport," said Varun Chaudhary, Managing Director, CG Corp Global, on Wai Wai Noodles.

"I was born in Nepal, but I was reborn from the womb of Mount Annapurna in Nepal," Mountaineer, Founder, Glacier Diplomat, The Voice of Glaciers Foundation, recalls an incident from 2023.

"I also would like to thank our friends abroad. I'm grateful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his call yesterday evening to our Prime Minister Balandra Shah, and for India's offer of whatever assistance Nepal requires and offer already backed by relief supplies," Rabi Lamichhane said.

"In a week like this, that solidarity is not a formality. It is felt," he added.

"Homes are gone, roads and bridges are gone. Families are waiting beside the river for news that has not yet come," Rabi Lamichhane, the chairman of Nepal's Rastriya Swatantra Party, said at NDTV's Anviksha.

"I'm not able to give you numbers at this moment. The count is not complete. What I can tell you is that the government of Nepal has mobilised on every front search and rescue through our security agencies and relief," he said.

"They may have their own reasons, but we have always laid a red carpet for all our heads of neighboring states," BJP's Vinay Sahasrabuddhe said when asked about Nepal PM's visit to India.

"I'm sure today or tomorrow they would definitely visit India and the relations could be taken to a different level beyond doubt," he added.

Sumnima Udas, the chair of the International Relation & Tourism Parliamentary Committee in Nepal, has said that the "narrative needs to shift" to improve the relations with India.

"For example, right now, the fact that the Prime Minister of Nepal has not visited India yet. There was a time when as soon as the Prime Minister was appointed, the first thing he would do was meet an Indian ambassador, and that sort of engagement was never sustainable and never correct, and the fact that he hasn't – it took him a while to meet the ambassador, and now he will be visiting India soon, but the fact that he didn't do it right away is being perceived in a certain way in the Indian media, and I don't think you should read so much into all of that because the Prime Minister has always said that he wants to focus on domestic issues first and foremost," she said.

"We must show Nepal the respect it deserves as a sovereign equal country, and we must treat it as an independent actor with its own asks and its own wishes as well," Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said during a panel discussion on 'Geopolitics & Cultural Diplomacy in South Asia' at NDTV's 'Anviksha' event.

"We're bound to meet with each other frequently," Ram Madhav said on border issues with Nepal.

"We have to take whatever necessary steps are to be taken to ensure that no illegal activity happens across the borders," he said.

BJP's Ram Madhav spoke about the protests in Nepal last year and in India this year.

"There was a particular situation in this country last year which led to that massive popular outburst, and it had resulted in a major change in the political dispensation here... Whatever decision people of Nepal or youth of Nepal took was in the interest of their country and that is their prerogative also," he said.

Speaking about student protests in India, he said that if a group has some issues, it can take them up with the government.

"The government is always willing to engage with them," Madav, BJP's National Vice President, said.

"That's what happened in Delhi last month... The issues raised were immediately addressed and that the movements agenda was fulfilled," he said.

"We are all with you, and we are really hopeful that with the relief activity that is being undertaken by the current government, Nepal would overcome this tragedy unfortunately," BJP's Ram Madhav told NDTV.

#NDTVWorldAnviksha | Nepal-India Industry Partnership: Building the Next Growth Corridor

On the panel with @AdityaRajKaul: Gaurav Tayal, Birendra Raj Pandey, @priyadarshi_crf, and Vishnu Agarwal#NDTVAnviksha #IdeasAcrossBorders #IndiaNepalDialogue pic.twitter.com/R6IXfRjWG6

— NDTV (@ndtv) August 27, 2026

Shashi Tharoor has said that India doesn't have to get "overexcited" about China's relationship with Nepal.

"Nepal has every right to have a relationship with China, with Chinese tourists, with Chinese businesses, have Chinese restaurants, let them do all of that. But as far as India is concerned, let us remember that our relationship stands on its own feet, and that we, as we began by talking about the respect we need to show in Nepal. That respect should extend also to people to people relations, and I believe it does and it can," he said at NDTV's 'Anviksha' India-Nepal Dialogue.

#NDTVWorldAnviksha | "Let's chill a bit": Congress MP Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) on Nepal's ties with China#NDTVAnviksha #IdeasAcrossBorders #IndiaNepalDialogue | @VishnuNDTV pic.twitter.com/yBdNLR7nPe

— NDTV (@ndtv) August 27, 2026

"Let's chill a bit," Tharoor, a former diplomat, added.

Speaking about the topic of his discussion, "Bridging Hearts and Borders: Nepal & India People-to-People Relations", Shashi Tharoor said, "In some ways a metaphor for your topic today has been the instant response of the government of India. Already yesterday a plane has landed with relief supplies. I'm sure there will be more and whatever other assistance Nepal wants from us, we have to be ready to give. This is something where bridging hearts and minds is and hearts and borders. I mean the border we say is irrelevant when it comes to travel. It should certainly be irrelevant when it comes."

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the Nepal flash floods have been "devastating", calling the situation "deeply troubling".

#NDTVWorldAnviksha | "Ready to give all assistance": Amb Naveen Srivastava, Ambassador of India to Nepal, on the flash floods #NDTVAnviksha #IdeasAcrossBorders #IndiaNepalDialogue | @VishnuNDTV pic.twitter.com/KMf7Pq7DrW

— NDTV (@ndtv) August 27, 2026

"We basically want all our neighbors to grow and prosper with us. So, for the last several years, we have been doing work in that direction," Naveen Srivastava, Indian ambassador to Nepal, said at NDTV 'Anviksha' India-Nepal Dialogue.

Naveen Srivastava, Indian ambassador to Nepal, has said that nearly 300 Indians have been missing in flash floods.

"We have not been able to make contacts with them, partly because the communication networks are down and there is no electricity," he told NDTV.

Asked when will Prime Minister Balen Shah will visit India, Shisir Khanal said that there is a lot of anticipation of this high-level visit on on both sides.

"As a Foreign ministry, we are always ready to make these visits happen, and I do anticipate these visits to take place in 2026. We don't have the dates yet. Both sides are working to make sure that these visits take place at the earliest," he told NDTV.

"Problems are obvious between two neighbours," Shisir Khanal said when asked about the border row with India.

"But what I would like to see is our mechanisms meet frequently. I'm very happy that in the last few months, Nepal and India's mechanisms have begun to function," he said.

He also said that there are "some issues" but they are not "as big as it's often made out on narratives".

Shisir Khanal said the current government in Nepal is the "product of the Gen Z movement", referring to the demonstrations last year that resulted in the collapse of the then KP Sharma's government and fresh elections that led to victory of the incumbent Balen Shah government.

Nearly 300 Indians are among over 400 foreigners missing after Nepal flash floods, Shisir Khanal said at NDTV's 'Anviksha'.

"I have also personally been in contact with governments across the world," he said.

Nepal Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal expressed his gratitude to NDTV for launching 'Anviksha', saying the dialogue is a "first of its kind" in Kathmandu.

A minute of silence has been observed for Nepal flash floods victims.

NDTV Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal has opened the  'Anviksha' India-Nepal Dialogue with a tribute to the victims of the flash floods in Nepal.

Speaking on the occasion, he said that India stands with Nepal. 

"It is the instinct to reach out when the other is hurting, to help when help is needed to stand beside each other when circumstances are at their hardest. Nepal is hurting today, and India stands with Nepal," he said.

NDTV World has launched its new dialogue series, "NDTV Anviksha: Ideas Across Borders", in Nepal.

The flash floods in Nepal -- that have killed over 160 people -- have changed the context in which 'Anviksha' is being held in Kathmandu, NDTV Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal said this morning.

"Through our conversations today, we'll hear from Nepal's top ministers and policymakers on the latest from the ground, the rescue and relief effort, and what India and the world can do to help. We'll also ask the larger questions this tragedy raises - about the growing vulnerability of the Himalayas, glacial lakes and flash floods, early-warning systems, and why an ecology that crosses borders demands solutions that cross borders too," he said.

"Anviksha was conceived as an attempt to understand countries beyond familiar narratives - their hopes and fears, their ambitions and anxieties, their happiness and their sorrow. Today, that means listening to Nepal, understanding what it is going through, and standing beside its people in an hour of profound grief," he added.

The devastating floods in Nepal have changed the context in which NDTV Anviksha — Ideas Across Borders is being held in Kathmandu today.

Through our conversations today, we’ll hear from Nepal’s top ministers and policymakers on the latest from the ground, the rescue and relief… pic.twitter.com/hjPuaqkniG

— Rahul Kanwal (@rahulkanwal) August 27, 2026

The Kathmandu event, the first edition of the series, will focus on how Nepal sees itself, what it wants for its future, and how it views its place in South Asia and the wider world.

The event in Kathmandu will focus on Nepal and its relationship with India, while also looking at the country's politics, economy, society and future.

The day-long dialogue will bring together politicians, diplomats, business leaders, technology experts, young entrepreneurs, athletes and cultural figures from India and Nepal.

NDTV World is set to launch its new dialogue series, "NDTV Anviksha: Ideas Across Borders", in Nepal today.