KATHMANDU, Oct 1 (NNN-NEPALNEWS) – Nepali traders, involved in Nepal-China trade, have seen prospect of increasing trade through Rasuwagadhi-Kerung route, after road upgrading works began on Syaphrubesi-Rasuwagadhi section, which connects Nepal’s capital Kathmandu and bordering town-Rasuwagadhi.
“Under the Syaphrubesi-Rasuwagadhi upgrading, the road will be widened to two lanes from the current one and it will also be blacktopped,” Arjun Thapa, chief of foreign cooperation division at the department said.
The road is part of 86-km Rasuwagadhi-Syaphrubesi-Mailing-Galchhi Road, which connects capital city-Kathmandu with another national highway. It will be an alternative road to current Kathmandu-Rasuwagadhi Road.
In the last fiscal year 2018-19, concluded in mid-July, as much as 20 percent of Nepal’s total trade took place through this route, which traders believe could be enhanced with better infrastructure on the Nepali side.
“Poor infrastructure is one of the main reasons why traders are still trading with China through the sea route, which accounts for nearly 80 percent of Nepal,” Ashok Kumar Shrestha, senior vice-president of Nepal Trans-Himalaya Border Commerce Association, a body of traders involved in bilateral trade, said. “If the infrastructure is improved, traders will prefer the land route, as it takes much less time for importing goods.”
In the last fiscal year, bilateral trade worth 372 million U.S. dollars took place through Rasuwaghi-Kerung route, which is 20 percent of Nepal’s total trade with China, according to Nepal’s central bank data.– NNN-NEPALNEWS