Feb 1, 1999
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NEPAL Mending Fences King Birendra's second visit after the 1988-89 crisis should cement Indo-Nepal ties. By Manoj Joshi
This week's visit by Nepal's King Birendra Bikram Shah and Queen Aishwariya as chief guests to the 49th Republic Day celebrations, the first by any South Asian head of state, is important. Indian Ambassador to Nepal K.V. Rajan says, "The Nepalese see this as a major gesture of goodwill by India." India's relations with the Nepalese monarchy which soured in the 1950s has remained indifferent through much of the past 30 years. "This is therefore an opportune time for India to shore up its relations with the royalty," says Mahendra Lama, associate professor of South Asian Studies at Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University. For the BJP the visit has a special significance. The second state visit of a Nepalese King to Delhi after the 1988-89 crisis in their relationship is a signal that the BJP-led coalition can manage India's small and often difficult neighbours with as much finesse as Inder Kumar Gujral could. Smaller than Orissa in area, Nepal's population barely exceeds that of Haryana. The high Himalayas to the north make its dependence on India almost complete -- also the reason for the troublesome relations between the two countries, made more difficult by anti-India politicians. "Despite changes of government in both countries," says Rajan, "ties between the two have shown a marked improvement in recent years." Long-standing differences in transit arrangements have been overcome with India providing concessions sought by Nepal. The Indo-Nepal trade treaty allows all goods made in Nepal duty-free access to India without quantitative restrictions. Through the historic 1996 treaty, both countries are working to exploit the water resources of the Mahakali river. Indian officials say that the difficulties arising out of Nepal's claim to the Kalapani area, at the very source of the river, are likely to be sorted out "in the course of time". India's agenda with Nepal has languished because of the rapid turnover of its coalition governments. According to Lama, high-level discussions with Nepal's monarch, who has more powers than the Indian President, will be a major boon. The first item on the agenda is the curtailment of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence activities in Kathmandu and the Terai region bordering India. The second major headache is the misuse of trade concessions by unscrupulous Nepalese and Indian traders. Taking advantage of lower Nepalese tariffs, goods of foreign origin like iron scrap, palm oil, acrylic, plastic and spices enter Nepal and are then transhipped to India. As per the treaty, the Nepalese industry association decides which goods are "made in Nepal". Officials say that both sides have now realised that they have a symbiotic relationship, so they have one choice -- either flourish or wither away together. |
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Geographical compulsions,
a common culture and a fenceless border ought to make for cosy relations between India and
Nepal. But they don't. In fact they appear to accentuate a sense of prickly nationalism.
Ask Madhuri Dixit. 
