Parliamentarians demand diplomatic efforts against India-China agreement on trade route via Lipulek

Kathmandu, Aug 22: The Members of the House of Representatives (HoR) continued expressing concern over the agreement India and China made for reopening trading route via Lipulek and called for resolving the issue through diplomatic process.

In the Special Hour of HoR meeting today, Ramhari Khatiwada said the agreement relating to reopening of trading route along the Lipulek, Limipyadhura and Kalapani area should be diplomatically addressed. Stating that Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is likely to visit to both neighbours in a few days, he emphasized the need to solve the issue through diplomatic talks.

He underscored the need for all Nepalis to unite and support the Head of the Government in this cause.
Likewise, Metmani Chaudhary echoed similar view as Khatiwada and urged the government to raise the issue and resolve it by dealing diplomatically.

Likewise, Mahesh Kumar Bartaula appraised the parliament about the increasing death of cattle from Lumpy Skin Disease in Makawanpur district. He informed that a total of 33,645 cows and buffalos were reported dead due to this infection in the last two months alone, incurring a loss of around Rs 70 billion in total.
Bartaula drew the attention of the Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development as well as the government to ensure availability of vaccine against this infection.

Barshaman Pun expressed concern over the government changing tax rate bypassing the parliament. He dubbed the act of altering the tax rates in less than a month of passage of the Finance Bill an ‘economic crime’. He sought a response from the Minister for Finance on this matter.

Prabhu Shah questioned why the diplomatic notes sent by Nepal to India and China a decade ago asserting Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura and Kalapani belong to Nepal went unacknowledged. He also raised a question about the performances of the ambassadors in those countries and thus demanded their performance evaluation.

On a different note, he demanded an impartial investigation into the case of youth stabbed to death at Gaur, Rautahat some days ago.

Bhagwati Chaudhary worried over lack of protection of Tharu language in Koshi Province and drew the attention of three-tiers of government towards it. She called on the government to make Tharu language an official language and use it in government’s function.

Hitraj Pandey demanded compensation to the families of those who died after falling off a cliff in a remote village-Chumnumri- the northern belt of Gorkha district.