India-Nepal officials discuss bilateral issues at border summit

MOTIHARI: India and Nepal discussed border security, people’s movement, cross border trade and tourism and agreed to jointly promote the tourism in both countries at the first two- day ‘Border Summit’ at Birganj city of Nepal near Indo-Nepal border organized by the consulate general office of India.
Ranjit Rae, Indian ambassador to Nepal, said PM Narendra Modi’s visit to Nepal has strengthened relation between the two neighboring countries and cleared several road blocks.On Thursday, the first day of the border summit Indian, Rae inaugurated the summit and Snehlata Kumar, secretary, India border management, Delhi, Rizwan Ansari, former state minister for home affairs, Nepal, Damodar Regwi, deputy director, customs, Nepal, Anju Ranjan, consul general of India in Nepal, and Kishori Lall ,customs commissioner, Patna, besides other policy makers spoke on the occasion.
On Friday, the second day of summit, officials and experts of both the countries discussed several topics regarding security, border trade and tourism. Regwi stressed on the need to relax customs norms on border and also expressed his concern over denial of entry to sugarcane loaded tractors of bordering Parsa and Bara districts in Nepal into Bihar territory to supply sugarcane to mills of East and West Champaran districts.
It may be recalled that SSB officials stopped Nepal tractors laden with sugarcane at Raxaul customs check-posts for last one week and SSB commandant Rakesh Kumar said they hade sought instructions from above in this regard. Rae said the border summit assumed significance because both countries sharing a common culture had people to people contact along 1870 km open border. In a unique initiative, border guarding force has replaced its gun-toting troops with a smiling non-combatized personnel team to interact and frisk people who cross over to India from international border of Nepal. This protocol has been put in place by SSB keeping in mind India’s good relations with Nepal and the fact that a large numbers of civilians cross over to both the sides for their regular business.
Ranjan said both the countries had signed an MoU to enhance cooperation on tourism and trade on the sidelines of the 18th SAARC summit held at Kathmandu recently. India and Nepal have agreed to jointly promote the Budhist circuits in India and Nepal. Umakant Parajuli, joint secretary, culture, tourism and civil aviation, Nepal, said both the governments with the co-operation of private sectors will run buses from Kathmandu to Varanasi, Bodh Gaya, Lumbani and Ayodhya to Janakpur, Kathmandu to Kamakhya soon.