New Delhi - India paid tribute to former Nepal prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala after his death on Saturday, describing him as a wise leader who guided the Himalayan nation in the right direction.

Koirala, who had been suffering from respiratory disease, died Nepalese capital Kathmandu, aged 85.

"Koirala was a mass leader and a statesman, whose knowledge and wisdom guided the polity of Nepal in the right direction at critical junctures in the country' s history," Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said.

His death "marks the end of an era in Nepalese politics" Singh said in a statement in New Delhi.

Koirala, is credited with brokering a peace deal which ended a bloody 10-year civil war in Nepal. - AFP