Effort to reopen Tatopani point: China's condition and joint team's site visit

With all three of Nepal's land border points with China closed, the government has begun efforts to reopen the Tatopani point. Only about two weeks remain until Dashain.

The government summoned officials from the Chinese embassy in Nepal and sought their cooperation to reopen the point. On Monday, officials from the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Infrastructure Development and the Chinese embassy held discussions on the matter at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

During the discussions, the Chinese side set a condition that it would decide to reopen the point only after inspecting the road on the Nepali side. The Chinese side said that opening the point would not make import-export possible unless the road was in good condition.

Following this, a joint team comprising officials from three ministries and a counsellor from the embassy carried out a site visit on Tuesday. The team, led by a joint secretary from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also included officials from the Department of Roads and the Charikot Road Division.

The team also held discussions with representatives of security agencies and the administration in Sindhupalchok. The Chinese side appeared positive about repairing the border road and resolving complications in operating the point.

Citing landslide risk, China had earlier closed the Tatopani-Khasa point. The Rasuwagadhi point has been closed since Bhadra 10 following flooding of the Bhotekoshi river. Continuous rainfall from Asoj 8 to 11 swept away the bridge connecting Mustang, cutting off road access to the Korala point as well.

According to Department of Customs data, goods worth more than 76 billion rupees were imported from China in the first two months of the current fiscal year. With the points closed, traders have suffered losses while consumers have had to bear rising prices.