Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's three-day visit to Beijing from Oct 22, following the visit of Premier Li Keqiang to New Delhi in May, is the first instance of reciprocal visits by the two heads of government in the same year since 1954. China's first premier, Zhou Enlai, and India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, visited India and China in the same year, that is, in 1954.

Singh's visit is expected to set the stage for enhanced bilateral engagement between the two countries with key regional and bilateral issues figuring on his agenda. India figures in China's new "major-nation diplomacy" - an initiative launched by the new leadership after taking office in March 2013 - with China being keen on strengthening ties with its western neighbor.

High-level and state visits have been acting as major confidence-building measures between the two countries for a long time. India established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China barely six months after it was established in October 1949. But even before the two countries forged diplomatic ties, Nehru, as a young Congress leader, visited China in the fall of 1939. The visit was cut short by the outbreak of World War II. Keeping the tradition alive in the last few years, high-level visits between China and India have picked up sharply and have become an important diplomatic tool in enhancing bilateral relations.