India’s recent announcement to recommence border trade with China from the Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand has once again spurred a decades-old territorial squabble with Nepal. Kathmandu did raise fierce objection to laying claim on the region by India India emphatically rejected the claim standing on the ground of history and continuity of trade from 1954.
The Heart of the Contention
In question is a tri-junction of Kalapani, Limpiyadhura, and Lipulekh . The official map of Nepal and the constitution of Nepal encompass this area as part of Nepal. According to India, these claims are untenable and has invited Nepal to diplomatic conversation with aim of resolving the issue. The bone of contention is in interpreting the Sugauli Treaty signed in 1816 , which made basis the Kali River to be the boundary.
Nepal's Claim: Argues that the Kali River originates at Limpiyadhura, basically putting the disputed land to the west and in the Nepal territory.
India's Position: It argues that the origin of the river is further downstream rendering the land, which houses Indian security forces since the war of 1962, to be part of Uttarakhand.
Strategic and Economic importance
It is not only a point that is on a map, the Lipulekh pass is a strategic and religious area.
- Strategic Value: It is a strategic mountain pass linking India and Tibet Auto-nomic Region of China strengthening the Indian tie near the border of Line of Actual Control (LAC).
- Tourism and Trade: It is an important trade route to Kailash Mansarovar ( traversed by the pilgrims during the annual pilgrimage) and it is the route of seasonal cross-border trade between India and China. A trigger to renewed diplomatic tensions happened when the Indian government, in 2020, upgraded a road to the pass.
Diplomatic Tensions and the Dynamics of the Region
Nepal considers road building and resumption of trade between India as acts other than agreements to handle the dispute through dialogue. This has run the close relationship between India and Nepal as a source of distrust due to a perceived political tilt on Nepal towards china. Although officially, China is a neutral state, its ambitions in the sphere of trade justify its policies of supporting merchants to transfer through the pass.
Conclusion
The Lipulekh Pass dispute highlights how history, strategy and diplomacy at the international level are intermeshed in South Asia. It underlines the role of historical interpretation of borders in addition to the modern strategic infrastructure development in the exposure of bilateral relations. This can only be resolved through Conservative diplomacy work and acknowledgement of one another and coming up with a solution to the problem based on historical facts and respect.
Month: Current Affairs - August 22, 2025
Category: current affairs daily