A delegation from London Borough of Barnet visits Pokhara

London – A six– member delegation led by Councillor Caroline Stock, former Mayor of London Borough of Barnet, has visited beautiful Nepalese city of Pokhara at the invitation of Mayor of Pokhara Metropolitan City, Dhana Raj Acharya.

During their week-long visit of Nepal, the first official delegation from Borough of Barnet held official talks with the delegation led by Mayor Acharya. During the meeting, Mayor Acharya welcomed the Barnet delegation and thanked them for accepting the invitation and visiting Pokhara Metropolitan City. He also asked them to participate at the Pokhara marathon.

Addressing the meeting, Cllr Caroline Stock said that the journey of twinning between Barnet and Pokhara began with a simple idea brought forward by Cllr Lachhya Gurung who was the Deputy Mayor.

“It was an idea that sought to foster cultural exchange and understanding between our different communities. The bond between our towns is hopefully more than symbolic and the fact that so many of us are here today from Barnet is evidence of our wish to develop collaborative projects and initiatives where we try and tackle common challenges from sustainable development and environmental conservation to developing relationships with both our younger and older citizens,” said Cllr Stock.

Councillor Lachhya Gurung, former Deputy Mayor of the Borough of Barnet, said that both sides discussed education, health, tourism, Pokhara marathon and exploring opportunities that benefit both of our cities. “We look forward to further promoting collaboration between our two cities and working closely for the benefit of our citizens,” he added.

The members of the delegation included Cllr Lachhya Gurung, Cllr Arjun Kumar Mittra, Cllr Ammar Naqvi, Cllr Kamal Gurung and Dr Richard Stock.

During their stay in Pokhara, the Barnet delegation visited Phewa Lake, Begnas lake, International Mountain Museum, the Gorkha Museum and the British Camp. The delegation went to Sarangkot hill to view the sunrise, visited World Peace Pagoda, Davis Falls, Gupteswor Cave and Pumdikot. They also visited  Matrishishu Miteri Hospital, Vindhyabashini High Schoolhospital and Nepal country office of Kidasha, a British charity. Kidasha is working in Pokhara and other towns of Nepal to improve children’s wellbeing, enable their learning and employment, and protect them from abuse and exploitation.

The Barnet and Pokhara Metropolitan City had entered into a twinning city agreement in May 2021.

After a tragic air crash in Pokhara on 15th January 2023 killing all 72 people on board, then Mayor of Barnet,  Cllr Alison Moore, sent a message to her counterpart in Pokhara expressing her condolences. As a mark of respect, the Borough flag flying outside of Hendon Town Hall flew at half-mast.

 Mayor of Barnet, Cllr Mayor Nagus Narenthira, was supposed to lead the delegation to Pokhara but had to cancel her visit at the last minute due to her personal circumstances.