AP photo

NEW DELHI: Moving to actively counter China’s infrastructure ‘offensive’, India will build a crucial cross-border rail link between Kathmandu in Nepal and Raxaul in Bihar, connecting Nepal to the Indian railway system, while a separate river transport system could give Nepal a route all the way to the sea.

Announcing these decisions after a meeting between Nepal PM KP Sharma Oli and Prime Minister Narendra Modi , foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale told journalists that this project would be a “game changer” between India and Nepal.

In addition, India and Nepal took a “decision to develop the inland waterways for the movement of cargo, within the framework of trade and transit arrangements, providing additional access to the sea for Nepal. This new initiative would enable cost-effective and efficient movement of cargo.”

The two countries agreed to speed up the implementation of projects in Nepal, a fact that was borne out by the 2018 budget where India raised its outlay for Nepal by 73 per cent.

Oli’s meeting with Modi, the first after his election victory in Nepal, succeeded in removing some of the bitterness in the relationship that has been in play since the Indian blockade of 2015.

Addressing the media after the meeting, Modi said India would support Nepal according to the country’s priorities. Oli said, “we want to erect a strong edifice of trust-based relationship between the two close neighbours that we are.”

Modi reminded Oli that he should include all sections of Nepalese society in his march forward.

Oli met Modi once on Friday evening and a second time, officially, on Saturday morning.

The two PMs inaugurated an integrated check post (ICP) at Birgunj and a petroleum product pipeline between Motihari and Amlekhgunj. Alongside a short joint statement, India and Nepal issued three separate statements on the rail links, river transport and agriculture.

Oli said he wanted to move Nepal away from its agri-deficiency. India agreed to share its experience with organic farming the new initiatives of soil health cards etc.

Modi accepted an invitation to visit Nepal, and Gokhale said it would happen this year. Modi is expected to inaugurate a couple of Indian hydro-electric power projects, there, which have been hanging fire for years.

Interestingly, even though China remains in the background in all discussions between or about India and Nepal, Gokhale stressed that China did not feature in the discussions between Modi and Oli, neither did the OBOR/BRI.

Earlier this morning, Oli was given a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan where he called on President Ram Nath Kovind , just before the latter left on a visit to Africa. Gokhale said Oli appreciated a recent visit by foreign minister Sushma Swaraj to Kathmandu even before his government had been formed.

Oli told Modi that the phase of political struggle in Nepal was over, they were entering a new era of stability. Describing the visit as “historic” Gokhale said the visit comes after the completion of the process of elections post promulgation of the new Constitution.

On the Kathmandu-Raxaul rail link, India has committed to completing a survey within a year and implementation timeline and funding modalities soon after.

This is important since China has promised to complete the Xigatse-Keirung-Kathmandu rail link by 2022. This was announced by the Chinese envoy to Nepal a couple of months ago.

In the past few months, India changed the Terai roads project to give to almost 75 Nepali contractors to complete the job — Indian officials complained that while India got blamed for the delays, the fact was that large tracts of the land for the road had not been acquired. In the joint statement today, India re-committed to completing the existing projects — “railway lines from Jayanagar to Janakpur/Kurtha and from Jogbani to Biratnagar Custom Yard will be completed in 2018.”

Work on the remaining stretch of the ongoing rail link projects: (a) Jayanagar-Bijalpura-Bardibas and (b) Jogbani-Biratnagar, will be taken forward on priority, India said. “India expressed appreciation for Nepal’s commitment to expeditiously resolve all outstanding issues, including land availability, for the ongoing rail link projects.” Three other links will be taken up: (i) New Jalpaiguri-Kakarbhitta, (b) Nautanwa-Bhairahawa, and (c) Nepalgunj Road-Nepalgunj.

However, on power trade, India said they would work out the “guidelines” between BBIN (Bhutan-Bangladesh-India-Nepal) countries after receiving feedback from some of them, particularly Bhutan. India believes the power trade is a success story within the region — power secretaries are expected to meet this month to sort out transparency and other rules in the guidelines, mainly to keep India’s interests in mind.

