Nepal-China trade via Rasuwagadhi-Kerung route is likely to resume from Monday, October 28. 

The route remains disrupted for a month following several landslides on the Chinese side of the border.

Citing Chinese authorities, Information Officer at Rasuwa Customs Office Rabindra Prasad Pyakurel told NBA that the repair work on the Chinese side of the border could be completed by Sunday, October 27. 

“Some small vehicles are likely to be allowed to pass starting tomorrow [Monday],” Pyakurel said. “We will continue to observe the road condition and gradually allow the movement of heavy vehicles and containers if everything goes well.”

Pyakurel, however, claimed that they lack adequate information regarding the extent of the damage on the Chinese side of the border.

Read: Poor Communication, Roads Disrupt Cross-Border Trade with China, Traders say

He had told NBA last week that hundreds of containers carrying clothes, fruits, and other goods meant for the Dashain and Tihar festivals and the winter season remain stranded at the Rasuwagadhi checkpoint.

Nepal conducts most of its trade with China through the Rasuwagadhi-Kerung and Tatopani-Khasa routes.

In the last fiscal year, approximately 34 percent of all imports from China and 67 percent of exports to China were channelled through these two ports, according to the Customs Department.

Trade between the two countries had been gradually increasing after the reopening of these checkpoints, which had been closed during the Covid pandemic. However, this progress has been halted by the recent floods and landslides .

The flooded Bhotekoshi River on September 28 swept away the bailey bridge at Larcha in Sindhupalchok district which connected the main office of the Tatopani Customs with China, bringing the trade with the northern neighbour via Tatopani-Khasa route to a standstill.

Customs Officer Surya Prasad Kaphle had told NBA last month that  another motorable bridge located around 700 metres from the border was also damaged by the roaring Liping River.

A few days after the disaster, the Bhotekoshi Rural Municipality-2, with the help of the Road Division Office, had installed a ‘tuin’ over Bhotekoshi River at Larcha.

Tuin, or Twine, is a rope-and-pulley system with or without a metal or a wooden trolley used for crossing a river.

The temporary structure was set up as the the residents of Lipinig village were disconnected from the rest of the country in the absence of the bailey bridge.

Kumar Shrestha, Chair of Bhotekoshi Rural Municipality-2, had earlier told the New Business Age that the local government had also brought into operation a ‘ Fadke ’, or a makeshift bridge, to facilitate the movement of people. 

Read: Tuin Cable Crossings Installed at Tatopani; Rasuwagadhi Checkpoint Still Closed

However, the cross-country trade via Tatopani border point resumed last Thursday, October 24, with the help of temporary measures, Kaphle said. “A temporary diversion has been created by installing hume pipes on the Bhotekoshi River,” Kaphle said, adding that the customs office suffered a revenue loss totaling Rs 80 million daily due to the closure of the point for 26 days from September 28.

While only small vehicles were allowed to pass in the beginning, the authorities have allowed the movement of heavy vehicles.  

Pyakurel from Rasuwa Customs said that the office targets to collect Rs 30 billion in revenue this fiscal year. “However, the recent disruption has already made it difficult.”

According to customs officials, the main imports through the two northern checkpoints include apples, garlic, clothing, electronic goods, and chemical fertilisers, while exports consist of copperware, herbs, flour, ghee, handicrafts, yak feed, noodles, eggs, and other goods.

Customs data from the first two months of the current fiscal year, mid-July to mid-September, reveals that goods worth Rs 20.49 billion were imported through these two checkpoints, while goods worth Rs 175 million were exported.

There are around a dozen other traditional trade points between the two countries, especially to benefit Nepalis living near the northern border for earning their livelihoods and purchasing daily necessities. However, they were only reopened earlier this year in May, after China had kept them closed for four years citing Covid pandemic.