Dolakha: Road Division Chief States No Road Obstacles for Tatopani Border Crossing

Dolakha. Road Division Charikot's Division Chief Engineer Narayan Datta Bhandari has stated that there are no road problems on the Nepal side for the operation of the Tatopani border crossing. He clarified that there is no situation where vehicle movement has to be stopped due to the road. After the Chinese side closed the Tatopani border crossing citing the road, a joint team including the Chinese team, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Customs Office, Department of Roads, District Administration Office Sindhupalchok, and security agencies monitored the landslide-affected roads on the Nepal side to reopen the closed border. Speaking to journalists during the monitoring, Chief Bhandari said that although some improvements need to be made to the road, it can be completed in one or two days and the border can be brought into operation. According to him, even during the monsoon, vehicles used to operate one-way on the road on the Nepal side. He informed that with the cessation of rain, work has started to improve the road for two-way vehicle operation. He said that recently, after receiving news that the Chinese side had stopped vehicle movement due to the difficult road on the Nepal side, a joint monitoring was conducted with the Chinese technical team to understand the actual situation. During the monitoring, Bhandari said, 'There is no situation where vehicles cannot pass due to the road. If some improvements are needed, we will do them in one or two days. Even during the monsoon, vehicles were passing one-way, and now work is underway for two-way operation. Although a message went from the Chinese side that the road was difficult and stopped, the actual situation was not like that. We have already passed 57 forty-five-foot containers and other stopped vehicles. If the border opens, vehicles will not be stopped for even an hour due to the road.' He clarified that the road on the Nepal side is fully ready for vehicle operation from the Department of Roads. The Tatopani border crossing has been closed due to landslides on the Kodari Highway. The Kerung border crossing has been closed due to floods on Bhadra 10, and the Mustang's Korala border crossing has also been closed due to recent floods and landslides. After the main border crossings on the Chinese side were closed, the government has been making efforts to operate the Tatopani border crossing.