One more step taken by China in Nepal, India's tension will increase!

New delhi date. Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Amid border dispute with India, China has started work on a કરોડ 300 million rail project in Nepal. This strategically important railway line will run from Lhasa to Kathmandu and will later be connected to Lumbini near the Indo-Nepal border. Chinese media have shared pictures of the survey of the railway project. The pictures show a team inspecting the corridor site.

Under these circumstances, while the border dispute between Nepal and India is ongoing, China is trying to strengthen its hold on Nepal through its own projects. On Monday, China held a virtual meeting with Pakistan, Nepal and Afghanistan to discuss enhancing cooperation for the Koro epidemic and the Belt and Road project.

The China-Nepal railway line was planned in 2008 but has not made much progress since then. However, amid the current Nepal-India border dispute, China has stepped up work on the corridor. The 2025 deadline has been set for this ambitious project. If we look at the various developments, according to Indian sources, the construction work of the project has not started yet but the survey has been started.

China laid the foundation stone for the project in 2008 and it was decided that the railway corridor would connect Lhasa to Shigaste and then extend to Kerung near the Nepal border. In the final phase, the railway line will be extended to Kathmandu and Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha.

However, concerns are growing about the estimated cost of this large project as it has already exceeded 300 million. The project is a complex one with many tunnels and bridges to be built.

According to sources, China wanted Nepal to bear half of the cost of the project but it delayed the project. According to many, China will complete other road projects in Nepal before the railway line because it will be easier and cheaper for it.

Railway scheme of India in Nepal

India has also proposed a rail corridor to curb Chinese influence in Nepal. There are plans to build 6 railway lines between India and Nepal. Talking about the status of these projects, Railway Board Chairman V.K. "We have put all our infrastructure projects at the top," Yadav said. However the timeline and details of the current project will be given later.

The Nepal-China railway line has many difficulties as it will pass through mountain roads. The railway line between India and Nepal will have relatively few problems. It is learned that some progress has been made in two of the six projects.

The cost of the Jayanagar-Janakpur-Bardibas railway line is Rs 5.5 billion. The 69 km project is divided into three phases. In the first phase, a 34 km railway line between Jayanagar and Kurtha is to be completed. In the second phase, 18 km railway line will be constructed between Kurtha and Bhangah and in the third phase, 17 km railway line will be constructed between Bhangah and Bardibas.

Nepal's Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli visited India in July 2018. At that time, the two parties agreed to complete the project by October 2018. However many deadlines have passed since then. According to sources, there are several operational issues including train operation, catering and rolling stock so the work has stalled.

Kathmandu-Raxaul railway line

The project involves construction of 136 km of railway line. Under this, there is a proposal to build an electrified rail line from Raxaul in Bihar to Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. The Indian team has already studied the feasibility of this project.