NEPAL FOREIGN MINISTER TO VISIT INDIA, TALK OVER FUEL CRISIS
NewsmediaOct 16, 2015World News
“I am looking forward to my meeting with the external affairs minister of India”. Speaking in parliament after his election as the Prime Minister, Oli said the undeclared blockade was an act by India against the bilateral treaties and international covenants, and India should lift it. The Madhesis, along with several other small ethnic groups, also want the states to be larger and to be given more autonomy over local matters.
Nepal is sandwiched between India and China, which themselves have a festering border dispute. He said External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will receive him and Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar is to call on him.
Since the protests began in southern Nepal with the Madhesi ethnic group, neighboring Indian has restricted fuel supplies, causing severe shortages.
The main border point at Birgunj, which handles 60-70 percent of India-Nepal trade, remained closed Tuesday while protesters continued to rally on the Nepalese side.
The Nepal government had formed a panel headed by Thapa to take diplomatic initiatives with India to ensure normal supplies of fuel and other essential commodities.
Nepal’s Prime Minister K P Oli shakes hands with his predecessor Sushil Koirala after being administered the oath of office on Monday. “The visit will provide us an opportunity to discuss all issues of mutual concern as well as to review and further strengthen the India-Nepal relations”, Swarup added.
BIRGANJ, Nepal (AP) – The line of parked cargo trucks stretches at least 18 miles (30 kilometers) from the Nepalese border. As and when the disruptions have slightly eased we have tried to send supplies through.
Clarifying his point, he said of the nine crossing points for carrying commercial cargo on the border, five to six points have been constantly in use.
Giving the latest position on truck movement, he said 733 commercial vehicles moved through seven crossing points in the past 24 hours. Some have been waiting on the Indian side for 45 days.
He said nearly 2,500 trucks – 1,500-2,000 at Raxaul and 750 at Sanauli – were waiting to cross over.
“The China-Nepal Jilong border crossing that was damaged during the Nepal earthquake at present has reopened”, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing.
But India insists the problem is Nepal’s, and that Indian truck drivers won’t resume their deliveries because they are afraid to cross into the middle of a protest camp.
