This story is from March 21, 2016

Peeved with India, Nepal set to offer railway, airport, oil and gas projects to China

Peeved with India, Nepal set to offer railway, airport, oil and gas projects to China
BEIJING: China is in talks with the visiting Nepali prime minister KP Sharma Oil to establish a rail network connecting different cities in the Himalayan kingdom, sources said. This is besides the plan to extent the Tibetan railway to the Nepali border.
The two countries signed 10 different agreements, and began negotiations on greater transport connectivity. The moves, which come after the recent blockade on the India-Nepal border, have great implications for India, observers said.
Indian infrastructure companies are bound to lose out in competition for Nepali projects because of inapt political and diplomatic handling of the blockade situation, sources said.

Chinese railway companies are eager to bag the contract for inland rail network, and would be ready to help the Nepal government to obtain funding, sources said.
The two countries have also started working on the first draft of a free trade agreement, Chinese official said.
Oli suggested that there could be two new rail lines, one connecting three Nepali cities and another one across the Nepal-China border, Hou Yanqi, deputy head of the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Asia Division, said.
Talking to Chinese premier Li Keqiang, Oli said he had "come to China with a special mission" for strengthening relations.

The visit comes soon after a border blockade resulting in stoppage of essential fuels and other goods from India. The blockade have been created by Nepali protestors. But Kathmandu has blamed the Indian government of encouraging them.
China plans to extend the rail line from the Tibetan city of Shigatse to Gyirong on the Nepal border, Hou confirmed.
" We believe that far in the future the two will countries be connected by rail," she said.
China and Nepal signed a total of 10 agreements, including on the feasibility plan for a free trade agreement. Beijing also offered concessional loan for a new airport in Nepal's Pokhara and a feasibility study for oil and gas survey projects.
Before leaving for China, Oli told China’s official Xinhua news agency that Nepal was also interested in utilizing Chinese seaports for its international trade.
Establishing a stronger presence in Nepal’s transportation links is politically important for China because the Himalayan kingdom is the first refuge of Tibetans who flee from Chinese provinces. Nepal has been blocking the entry of refugees at the instance of the Chinese government.
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Saibal Dasgupta

Author of Running with the Dragon: How India Should Do Business with China

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