India agrees to open Sarada bridge 7 hrs daily

KATHMANDU, JUN 02 -

India has agreed to open the bridge at the Sarada Barrage, the western border point between Nepal and India , from the existing five hours to seven on a daily basis.

India n authorities agreed to increase the opening hours during the Home Secretary-level talks between Nepal and India that concluded in Kathmandu on Saturday upon the request of the Nepal i side to open the passage round the clock.

Officials of the two countries, however, did not discuss in detail the building of a new bridge as part of the Mahakali Treaty that proposes the replacement of the dilapidated structure by a new one at the barrage.

Currently, the old bridge opens barely for one and a half hours in the morning, afternoon and evening each for those crossing the border controlled by India .

Locals, the Nepal i business community and political leaders have been demanding a new bridge citing that it is difficult to take loaded vehicles across the river on the old infrastructure.

Both the sides have also taken up forming a new technical team to complete the mapping of the remaining parts of the Nepal - India boundary. Nepal and India , in 2007, finalised 99 percent of boundary maps (strip maps). The meeting decided to form a new panel to map the remaining the Susta and Kalapani areas, to maintain boundary pillars and to demarcate the boundary according to the agreed strip maps.

Amid differences, the Nepal i side has been pushing for a technical team to complete the remaining tasks of mapping and demarcation. India is for formalising the strip map on which works have been completed earlier. For Susta and Kalapani, India has been saying that a new technical panel of surveyors can map them.

According to Nepal i officials, the India n side raised the “vulnerable security arrangement” at the Tribhuvan International Airport and reiterated to extend technical and financial support to upgrade it. The India n side has once again offered to work with Nepal to improve the TIA, officials said. The Nepal i side gave the usual reply that the matter can be forwarded through diplomatic channels.

Although the talks were inconclusive about the establishment of the Nepal Police Academy in Panauti, Kavre, due to some technical reasons and differences, the India n side expressed its commitment to implementing the project. India n authorities agreed to the Nepal i stance on tax involving India n trainers at the Academy.

Besides the regular agenda, both the sides discussed ways to curb criminal activities across the border, effective border management, addressing common security challenges, mitigating trafficking in persons and drugs, circulation of fake India n currency notes and intelligence and information sharing.

The delegation was led by Nabin Ghimire on the Nepal side while the India n team was headed by RK Singh.

Source: The Kathmandu Post