What's the Vibe Now?

The changes in Nepal offer a sublime chance to New Delhi to recalibrate its policy provided it proceeds with caution and humility

- Seema Guha IS A SENIOR JOURNALIST COVERING FOREIGN AFFAIRS

On April 25, 2015, when a devastating earthquake struck Nepal, India was the first respondent. Within six hours, the Indian Air Force was in action, flying in men and medical aid and helping in rescue operations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an emergency cabinet meeting to plan India's response and Operation Maitri was launched.

This was early in his tenure and he was popular in Nepal. Modi's first visit abroad as prime minister was to Kathmandu, where he addressed a session of the Constituent Assembly, prayed at the Pashupatinath Temple and interacted with common citizens. Nepalese citizens were impressed and felt that here was an Indian leader who spoke from the heart. He was riding a popularity wave in the Himalayan country. It was an Indian prime ministerial visit after 17 years, indicating the importance of Nepal in his neighbourhood first policy.

In the first few days there was appreciation of India's rescue efforts. The Indian media swarmed the place, and the breathless reporting by television channels of India's great rescue efforts blared on screen 24x7. Public mood in Nepal changed within a week, as people felt that India was too keen to earn brownie points for its rescue work. This was prompted more by the godi media (read Modi media) than the government. But it left a bad taste. The hashtag #GoHomeIndianMedia began to trend in Nepal at that time.

“We might be poor, but we have our own sense of pride... The Indians were the first to come to our rescue, but they have hyped their contribution more than they’ve actually contributed,” Sharad Khatri, who ran a FM station, was quoted as saying at that time. The latent anti-India sentiments came to the fore at that time. One step forward and two steps backward is perhaps the best way to describe India-Nepal relations for the past several decades.