Patna: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Patna on May 11 on the "call" of Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar to discuss and review development projects initiated by the Centre.

He will then fly in a chopper to Janakpur in Nepal to pay obeisance to the place where Goddess Sita was brought up by King Janak. Modi and his Nepal counterpart K.P. Oli will inaugurate the Ramayan circuit and could also visit Kathmandu before returning to New Delhi the next day.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji will be visiting Patna on May 11 before going to Janakpur and Kathmandu," JDU secretary general K.C. Tyagi told The Telegraph.

A senior official in the Bihar government said Modi will be in Patna for some time and is expected to take stock of the development projects, especially those that are being aided or implemented by the Centre.

"Files of several projects have started moving. Information and latest reports from the ground level are being gleaned so that officials are fact-ready for the occasion," the senior official said.

Sources said Modi's sudden visit was scheduled after Nitish met him in Delhi on Wednesday evening. It was not publicised despite being held after the two leaders met at a meeting chaired by President Ram Nath Kovind earlier in the day to discuss preparations to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

This will be Modi's second visit to the state in a month. "His visit is significant because it's less than a year to the Lok Sabha elections and he would not like to lose his best friend in Bihar or have him in a grumpy mood at poll time. The state with 40 Lok Sabha seats has ample muscle and things are not as rosy as they were in 2014 general elections," a senior NDA leader said.