Army chief meets US ambassador, US to provide helicopters and drones worth $150 million

The United States will provide helicopters, advanced drones and river boats used in river rescue to boost Nepal's disaster response capacity.

This was announced during a meeting between Nepali Army Chief of the Army Staff Maharathi Ashokraj Sigdel and US Charge d'Affaires to Nepal Megan Bolden on Thursday.

The meeting discussed bilateral partnership between the two countries, disaster preparedness following last Bhadra's floods, and search and rescue cooperation.

According to Charge d'Affaires Bolden, the total value of this US-made equipment exceeds $150 million.

Based on Nepal Rastra Bank's buying rate of NPR 152.06 per US dollar set for Thursday, this amount exceeds NPR 22.80 billion.

The handover process for the equipment is expected to begin from next year.