Nepal’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Kamal Thapa with India’s Sushma Swaraj during a meeting at in New Delhi.
DPA/Kathmandu
Nepalese Foreign Minister Kamal Thapa said yesterday that there were positive indications that the blockade on the Nepal-India border would be resolved after it has caused more than two months of shortages of fuel and other goods in his country.
Thapa said upon his return from New Delhi that his talks with Indian leaders, who included Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj, had moved in a positive direction.
The resumption of imports is crucial for landlocked Nepal, which relies on India for nearly all of its fuel and a large proportion of many other goods.
Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli echoed Thapa’s statement in an interview on Kantipur Television, saying the prospects for a resolution of the border crisis were looking up and that the government would soon hold decisive talks with the Madhesh-based parties who were holding protests against the country’s new constitution.
The border blockade stems from protests. More than 50 people have died since August in clashes and protests by the Madhesi community, which is demanding greater autonomy.
The main parties in Nepal’s parliament have agreed to forward proposals for a constitutional amendment.
Earlier, Swaraj told India’s Parliament in New Dehli that Nepal’s people and parties must find a political solution to the crisis. She also proposed an all-party delegation be sent to Nepal.
Large sections of Nepal’s population believe the new constitution is non-inclusive and New Delhi had warned its neighbour of a looming crisis on their border if the grievances of the disaffected sections of population are not addressed, she said.
India’s warnings were not heeded and the situation has escalated, Swaraj said, adding that India has been affected by the violence as well. It has lost business and faces resentment over the shortages from Nepal’s people.
Trucks from India stopped travelling to Nepal in September, citing security concerns, but Swaraj said India was not hindering trade and the blockades were caused from the Nepalese side.
While some supplies are entering Nepal from other border crossing points, the primary Raxaul-Birganj crossing, which had accounted for two-thirds of trade, has been closed for more than two months.
Several thousand Indian trucks have been waiting for weeks to be able to respond quickly if blockages on the Nepal side were lifted, Swaraj said.
Clashes broke out late Wednesday when an Indian truck was blocked by protesters at the Raxaul-Birganj crossing in Nepal’s Parsa district, according to News 24 channel.
Indians complained that their businesses have been affected by ongoing Nepalese strikes, the report said. Five Nepalis were hospitalized, the Kantipur daily reported.
