Tibet border closure hits family reunions, local trade

Tibetan officials say they are still awaiting Beijing’s permission to reopen the border, which was shut in January 2020 to tame the Covid pandemic.

Temba and his wife Paten Sherpa, permanent residents of Olangchungola in ward 7 of Phaktanglung Rural Municipality, live in an animal shed near Sinjema lake. They raise yaks in the highlands and also provide food and accommodation for visitors. They have three children who study in Phungling, the district headquarters of Taplejung, and in Kathmandu.