A personal account crossing the border revealed the deep ties between Nepal and China

At the Raswagadi border crossing, which Chinese maps from the 1792 war call “Resoqiao,” or “Iron Chain Bridge,” dust is the norm. The Nepalese Army rebuilt the fort’s walls as Gurkhali soldiers repelled the Chings in a three-day battle after it collapsed during the 2015 earthquake. The earthquake further destabilized the delicate geological stability of the area. Landslides are common. In Timor, about 3 kilometers from the border, a yellow house submerged in a sea of ​​mud, a terrifying memorial to nine people who died in a landslide here in 2018.

The fragile geology did not prevent its anchorage from becoming a construction center. Land prices rose in Timor in anticipation of the dry port that the Chinese government-owned Tibet Fuli Construction Co. Ltd. plans to build here, at an estimated cost of 124 million RMB, and deliver it to Nepal. Just 400 meters south of the border crossing, China Water and Electricity Corporation is the main contractor for the 110 MW Rasuwagadhi hydropower project. Tibet Tinalu Co., Ltd. is building the road to Syabrubesi in Rasuwagadhi itself, where the Lende River meets the muddy waters of the Gyirong Zangbo River, the Chinese are building a new “Friendship” Bridge to replace the temporary Bailey Bridge installed after the earthquake. . Just before the border checkpoint, a Chinese driver struggles to divert his excavator towards the parking lot; His gearbox is leaking oil, and every time he presses the throttle, a cloud of dust envelops us. The sound of the river sank to the industrial buzz of excavators, bulldozers and rigs. Trucks wait their turn to cross the border into China, a queue that stretches for kilometers. Krishna, my driver, told me, “Sometimes they have to wait for days.”

All Roads Lead North: Nepal’s Turning to China by Amish Raj Mulmi. Publisher: Context, Westland Publications.

We cross the border in a group of seven: A Nepalese customs official working in Timor is here with his two sons, two other locals, Krishna and myself. As we walk across the Bailey Bridge, the difference between the two countries has never been more apparent. . While the dust points to the Nepalese side, there is an order made of concrete that characterizes the Chinese side. Immigration center and cargo terminal constructed after the earthquake; As late as 2006, there was a two-story building that marked the Chinese side. “The Chinese are able to build what they want to build,” says Krishna. If the Chinese intended to shock and awe, they succeeded.

An official from the Nepalese Armed Police helps us and tells the Chinese immigration officer that we are all going ‘shopping’. Nepalese can cross the border to shop in supermarkets on the Chinese side with documents; If I had brought my citizenship card, I could obtain a 24-hour pass that would allow me to go up to Gyirong, about 25 km away. But such documents are not needed here; Instead, a Chinese immigration officer lines up for us and clicks a picture. Once out of the crosshairs, my driver told me that we all have to get all seven back together, or else we’ll be detained by the Chinese authorities.

I take my first steps in China, marveling at the sudden change in spatial realities. The dust and noise in Nepal appears to be a thousand kilometers away. Nepalese trucks line a massive four-lane concrete road, in a display of unmistakable Nepali discipline. The rugged hills that are the bane of Nepalese highways have been tamed by ergonomics here. Behind the terminal is a three-story building, the ground floors of it are occupied by supermarkets that sell everything from mosquito repellent to Lhasa beer at wholesale prices, and restaurants that advertise Chinese and Nepalese foods. The smell of apple lingers in the air. At the Nepal-owned Bhrikuti Tara restaurant, I meet some truck drivers who are bringing fruit from China. Someone told me “No apples come from India because of the Indian elections.”

The Raswa-Jirung border crossing was the only internal trade route between Nepal and China between 2015 and 2019, when the Tatupani-Zhangmu border crossing reopened after four years. While the Tatupani crossing may be closer to Kathmandu, the Rasua crossing allows for easier transportation to other Nepalese cities. In 2018, Rasuwa exceeded its revenue collection target by 26 percent, transporting at least 900 truckloads of cargo between Nepal and China. Even trucks that were running on the Tatubani border have moved here. Tatopani truck owners are willing to haul cargo for 75,000-80,000 NPR per trip because they make at least two to three trips per month. But locals in Rasua are demanding at least 110,000 Nepalese rupees per trip, Krishna, who also owns one container truck, told me. We were negotiating prices. Let’s see what happens. ‘ He’s a part-time local politician who knows the inner workings of the system, and gets off comfortably to direct traffic at the border. He knows a Nepalese woman who married a Chinese man and now lives in Girong, and he asks me if he should buy some land in partnership with them and grow some vegetables to sell to the Chinese. I am sure the money will be good. I know little about the sales potential for such a project, but it sounds like an excellent idea on paper so I’m not deterred.

The customs officer who passed by peeped at the store and asked if we were planning to return soon. Finish off shopping. He bought walnuts, canned juice, pasta and some things I can’t recognize. There is no rush. “We can leave as soon as it’s over,” he says, and returns to his children, who are sitting on the sidewalk outside.

Behind the shopping center is a ridge of Tibetan prayer flags, suspended from rock walls. When we were ready to go back, Krishna rushed into a store and came out with a pack of twenty rolls of toilet paper. “It’s much cheaper here,” he says. Each of us starts comparing prices. Nut bag, in NPR 400, steal; As well as beer in NPR 100 cans. Our little trip to China ends when the seven of us walk inside the departure terminal. Another official asked us to stand in line, look carefully at her cellphone, and ordered one of us to remove his hat. Once out, we lift our masks and cross the bridge back to dusty Nepal. Almost immediately, we were greeted by a traffic jam. A truck hired by the Nepalese army to bring ammonium nitrate for explosives from Gyirong closed the road, and a gray-haired police officer had a stroke and anger. As we park our car on the side of the road, one of the sons of a customs official points to a Chinese man smoking on the side of the road. “Wasn’t he the same person who yesterday refused to take the elevator?” He asks his brother.

Extracted with permission from All Roads Lead North: Nepal’s Turn To China by Amish Raj Mulmi, published by Context, an imprint of Westland Publications, March 2021

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