Pact likely to allow all kinds of rail cargo to Nepal from Indian ports
KATHMANDU, Jan 5:
After lingering the issue for more than two years, Nepal and India are finally preparing to review the existing Railway Service Agreement (RSA) in order to pave the way for movement of rail cargo between any Inland Container Depots (ICDs) or Integrated Check points (ICP) in Nepal and additional sea ports of India.
A joint secretary level meeting scheduled for January 23 and 24 in Kathmandu is likely to take up the matter.
Though the earlier meeting held in New Delhi in 2009 had agreed to hold RSA review meeting within six months, the review was long overdue due to apathy of Indian side to timely review.
“Both sides are agreeing to allow movement of railway containers to any ICP or ICD of Nepal without any objection, which would enhance the flow of overseas goods to Nepal via India as India is positive in this regard,” Sarad Bikram Rana, Executive Director of Nepal Inter-model Transport Development Board (NITDB), told Republica on Wednesday. He said India had informally showed readiness in 2009 too to provide such facilities.
As per the existing RSA, which was signed in 2004, movement of rail cargo is allowed to move only to Birgunj ICP from Kolkatta and Haldia.
“The agreement, once signed, will pave the way to automatically connect our ICP or ICD with other upcoming ports in India,” added Rana. Operationalization of Visakhapatnam port and Sighabad-Rohanpur routes between Nepal-Bangladesh can see the light of day to secure movement of goods via railway wagon once the proposed review is signed.
Currently Birgunj ICP has been brought into operation to carry the railway wagon from Kolkata and Haldia ports. Similarly, out of the proposed four ICPs in Biratnagar, Birgunj, Bhairahawa and Nepalgunj, Birgunj ICP is to be operationalised from this year and remaining are under-construction.
However, there should of Letter of Exchange (LoE) between the two countries for the facility.
A source at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) said LoE for operationalization of Rohanpur-Sighabad routes and Visakhapatnam ports has been delayed as Nepal has been objecting to Indian move to introduce additional one-time lock on containers moving from Kolkata port fearing that the system would be replicated with other ports.
Rana also said the proposed pact will also allow the movement of bulk open rail cargo and refrigerated wagons to Nepal in addition to closed cargo movement facility currently being enjoyed by Nepal. The delay in RSA review has prevented Nepal from transporting goods in bulk and hoodless containers.
This has also deprived the ICD manager - Himalayan Terminal - from operating loose goods, liquid goods and refrigerated goods, limiting itself to only closed-box racks, which has constrained the effectiveness of the sole operating ICD and in turn failed to cut cost of transit transportation by over 25 percent as targeted.
Besides, Nepali traders need to pay tens of millions of rupee in demurrage to the port authorities in Kolkata every year due to delay in clearing goods from the port - just because existing RSA does not allow shipment of bulk quantity of goods from the port to Nepal.
Capacity utilization of Birgunj Dry Port - where more than 80 percent of imports come through railway - is in the lowest ebb in absence of provision for allowing bulk cargo without fresh revision in RSA.
Source: Republica
