Trade with Tibet to remain open even during monsoon

Published On: June 12, 2018 08:35 AM NPT By: HIMNATH DEVKOTA


RASUWA, June 11: Trade with China’s Tibet will remain open even during the upcoming monsoon season, according to local authorities. 

Authorities said they have prepared a work plan of clearing hurdles on the road for vehicles to reach Rasuwagadhi, the customs points along the Chinese border, even during the monsoon. Unlike in the past, the authorities are ‘set to immediately respond’ to any landslide or damage along the road and keep transportation open. 

Division Road Office Rasuwa has agreed to put an excavator and a loader along the section from Betrabati to Syaphrubeshi to respond to any damages by the monsoon. This was a development at the meeting of District Natural Disaster Preparedness Committee, which followed a stakeholders’ meet in the district on Monday. 

Likewise, Sanjen Jalavidhyut Company Pvt Ltd, which is building two power plants in the area, will clear any hurdle induced by landslide in the section of Syaphrubeshi to Rasuwagadhi, according to the committee. 

Chief District Officer (CDO) Krishna Paudel informed that they will regularly monitor the roads and works committed by the two agencies to keep the route intact for smooth flow of vehicles.
All equipment essential for clearing road hurdles will be kept standby from the third week of June, according to the committee. 

Nepal’s trade with China has improved, with the export to the northern neighbor increasing by 87 percent to 2.26 billion in the tenth months of the current fiscal year. Nepal imported goods worth Rs 127.24 billion from China during the same period, which is a growth by 22 percent compared to the same period last year. 

The route, which opened partially after the Jure landslide damaged the connectivity with Tatopani customs point in 2014, came into full operation after the Tatopani route saw further damages by the 2015 earthquake. 

Meanwhile, Nepal Army has recently completed track opening of a 16-kilometer-long double-lane section along the Trishuli River bank to make the route shorter to reach the northern border point, while road expansion in the remaining 46 kilometers of the route is underway. 

In another decision for rescue and relief operations as part of disaster preparedness, the committee said that it has fixed emergency shelter points apart from adopting other measures for emergency food and water supply. The district is prone to landslides and floods in the monsoon season.
CDO Paudel also claimed that they will notify concerned government entities, and other stakeholders through text messages within five minutes of any disaster. According to him, action will be taken against any non-government organization established to work in the field of natural disaster if they are found inactive in the event of disasters. 


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