India & Nepal jointly inaugurate 108km road to improve daily connectivity at border

On Tuesday, India and Nepal jointly inaugurated a newly constructed 108-kilometre road connecting Indian borders with several areas of the Himalayan nation, the Indian embassy said. According to a statement issued by the Indian embassy in Kathmandu, the Indian government has provided the grant assistance of Rs 44.48 million that was utilised for the construction of the road.  

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A statement issued by the embassy said the road from the Indian border Laxmipur-Balara connecting to Nepal's Gadhaiya in Sarlahi district was jointly inaugurated by Consul General of the Consulate General of India, Nitesh Kumar and Birgunj & Binod Kumar Mauwar, division chief of Department of Roads, Chandranigahpur.

"The newly-built road connecting the Indo-Nepal border is expected to ease the movement of daily commuters across the border.  The road was taken up as a high impact community development project under an agreement between the governments of India and Nepal. The project is a reflection of India's development partnership with Nepal and complements the efforts of the Government of Nepal in strengthening infrastructure", the release said, reported ANI.

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India-Nepal boundary dispute

In the year 2020, India-Nepal bilateral relations witnessed strain after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated an 80-km-long strategically crucial road connecting the Lipulekh pass with Dharchula in Uttarakhand on May 8 last year. Nepal protested the inauguration of the road claiming that it passed through its territory and days later came out with a new map showing Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura as its territories.

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Nepal Favours Talks To Resolve Border Issue With India

On January 16, on a three-day visit to India Nepal Foreign Minister pitched for talks between New Delhi and Kathmandu to resolve the pending boundary issue. Pradeep Kumar Gyawali also sought an early review of the bilateral peace and friendship treaty of 1950 and flagged concerns over his country's trade deficit with India. He said finding a solution to it will help instil a greater degree of trust and confidence in bilateral ties.

"While both sides have agreed to resolve the boundary question through talks, we have also shown wisdom that despite the difference in one area, the momentum of our overall engagements is continued," he said. The Nepal government led by KP Sharma Oli which had pivoted to take unusual stands against India since has now fallen, however, with the Oli now caretaker PM and facing the heat from his own erstwhile party-mates ahead of elections tentatively set to take place in a few months time.

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(With PTI Inputs)