The meeting held in Kathmandu reviewed the implementation of the agreements reached between the two sides during the Home Secretary level meeting held last year in New Delhi and decided to take up extra measures to curb cross border crimes including smuggling of fake Indian currency, drugs smuggling and human trafficking. [break]
While the Indian delegation led by Home Secretary R K Singh agreed to impart training to Nepali police personnel and help revamp Nepal Police Academy with necessary resources, Nepali side while taking note of Indian concerns on cross border crimes agreed to step up security measures to contain such activities, said Nepali officials participating in the meeting. “We had given special focus on easing the hardships faced by people living in the bordering areas,” said a Nepali official.
Indian side has positively responded to the request of Nepali side to keep border open at Sharada Barrage and Banbasa for seven hours as against existing five hours a day to facilitate the movement of local people across the border.
Officials present at the meeting said Indian side prominently raised the issue of containing smuggling of fake Indian currency through Nepali border, exchange of real time information on security-related issues and arresting the Indian criminals who have sneaked into Nepal.
The Nepali side led by Home Secretary Nabin Kumar Ghimire had briefed Indian side that Nepal had seized fake Indian currency with face value of over 110 million rupees and arrested 64 persons in connection with the smuggling over the past few years. Also, the Nepali side assured that Nepal was effectively cooperating with India on arresting and prosecuting criminals, giving an instance of the recent arrest of notorious Indian criminal Bablu Dubey in Nepal.
Though the Indian side had made a proposal to provide Nepal with machines to check fake Indian currency, there was no specific agreement on the issue.
During the meeting, Both Indian and Nepali sides exchanged a list of names of criminals who are believed to be hiding in each others" countries. Though the Indian side said that lack of extradition treaty has made it difficult to hand over criminals arrested in each other"s countries, Nepali side had cautiously avoided the issue saying such an agreement needs consensus at political level.
This is a regular meeting between Nepal and India held alternatively in Kathmandu and New Delhi each year. The last Home Secretary level talks were held in New Delhi in January 2012. A thirteen member delegation from India is currently in Kathmandu for the meeting.
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