Kathmandu, July 7 -- Barely 60km from the Nepal border in India is the village of Uditpur where most residents are retired Gorkha soldiers and their descendants.

Called 'Army Village', there are 85 households with former veterans from Nepal and their families. Every other house in this neighbourhood belongs to a former soldier, and Nepali can be heard being spoken on the streets.

The village was previously named Baikunthapur, but was renamed Army Village by the district magistrate as a sign of respect to Nepal by the Indian government, says Suk Bahadur Gurung, 76, one of the retirees.

Suk Bahadur was deployed in the artillery unit of the Indian Army before retiring as a major in 1994, and now heads the Gorkha Village Social Welfare Com...