Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is planning to visit Lumbini, the birth place of Lord Buddha, in Nepal on May 16 to celebrate Buddha Jayanti, birth anniversary of Lord Buddha, The Hindu reported.

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is also expected to be in Lumbini to mark the occasion, the sources added.

Indian Prime Minister, however, will not stay in Kathmandu, according to The Hindu.

Temple trustees have told local media that the two Prime Ministers will take part in the lamp-lighting ceremony at the Mayadevi temple.

According to the sources, the Ministry of External Affairs and security officials have already conducted a reconnaissance of the arrangements for the visit, The Hindu reported.

This will be Modi’s first visit to Nepal since he was re-elected in 2019. In his previous term, he visited Nepal on four occasions, including twice in 2014 and twice in 2018.