WITHOUT F EAR OR FAVOUR Nepal’s largest selling English daily Vol XXVIII No. 318 | 8 pages | Rs.5 O O Printed simultaneously in Kathmandu, Biratnagar, Bharatpur and Nepalgunj 22.9 C -3.9 C Friday, January 15, 2021 | 02-10-2077 Dipayal Jumla As Gyawali lands in Delhi, India hints boundary talks unlikely Joint Commission and boundary talks are two different mechanisms, says India’s Ministry of External Affairs, even as Nepal keeps the territory issue high on the agenda. SURESH RAJ NEUPANE external affairs minister tomorrow.” NEW DELHI, JAN 14 “The joint commission is an impor- tant mechanism. It provides an oppor- In what could be a major setback for tunity for reviewing at high level the the KP Sharma Oli government, India entire gamut of our bilateral partner- has indicated that boundary talks are ship and to provide political guidance unlikely during Foreign Minister to further enhance the special and Pradeep Gyawali’s New Delhi visit. unique ties that exist between our two Gyawali arrived in the Indian capi- countries. We look forward to con- tal on Thursday to participate in the structive discussions on the numer- Sixth Meeting of the India-Nepal Joint ous sectors that encompass our bilat- Commission, a high-level mechanism eral agenda.” that deals with the entire gamut of Gyawali’s is the first high level visit bilateral relations. to Delhi from Kathmandu in over a The boundary issue is high on the year which saw bilateral ties hitting a POST PHOTO: DURGA LAL KC agenda, but as soon as Gyawali landed rock bottom. Tharu women in traditional attire attend a Maghi celebration at Gadhawa in Dang on Thursday. Maghi is a major festival of the indigenous Tharus who live mostly in Nepal’s plains. in New Delhi, India’s Ministry of Relations between Nepal and India External Affairs reiterated India’s started to deteriorate in November position on the boundary row. 2019 after Delhi published a new “Our position on the boundary map including Kalapani within India’s INTERVIEW issue is well known,” Anurag territories. Srivastava, spokesperson for India’s New Delhi cold-shouldered Ministry of External Affairs, said Kathmandu’s call for diplomatic dia- during a regular press briefing on logue. Instead, in May last year, India Pradeep Gyawali: ‘I am here with the objective of making Thursday. “The joint commission and opened a road link via Lipulekh to boundary talks are two different Kailash Mansarovar in the Tibet mechanisms.” Autonomous Region of China. In Nepal-India relations even stronger based on trust’ Responding to queries on Gyawali’s response, Nepal published its own visit to Delhi, Srivastava said: “The political map depicting Kalapani, foreign minister of Nepal arrived in Lipulekh and Limiyadhura as parts of New Delhi a short while ago. He is here the Nepali territory. The foreign minister on his visit to Delhi, which is taking place not only after a long gap of engagements but also to co-chair the sixth session of the Both countries entered a state of India-Nepal Joint Commission meet- cartographic war. at a time when there is a political crisis in Kathmandu, and on his agendas and priorities. ing. This meeting will be hosted by the >> Continued on page 2 Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali have similar expectations. We will dis- arrived in New Delhi on Thursday cuss all the facets of our ties and come afternoon on a three-day visit. Gyawali up with a conclusion. is in the Indian capital to participate While Nepal has been saying that it in the Sixth Meeting of the Nepal- will raise the boundary issue with India Joint Commission, which deals priority, India’s Ministry of External with the entire gamut of bilateral Affairs has said that the joint commis- relations between the two countries. sion and boundary talks are two dif- This is the first visit from Kathmandu ferent mechanisms. at the highest level in over a year. The I am not aware of India’s reaction. visit is taking place after Nepal-India So it won’t be appropriate to comment relations hit a rock bottom over the on that. But this Joint Commission boundary issue. Nepal is expecting to has a very wide mandate. Political, raise the boundary issue with India border, security, development and during Gyawali’s stay in Delhi. transportation issues fall under it. We Gyawali’s visit is significant also will hold discussions on all these because it is taking place at a time issues and come up with a necessary when there is a political crisis in conclusion. Nepal will discuss the Kathmandu caused by Prime Minister issues that it has prioritised and will KP Sharma Oli’s decision to dissolve try to find a resolution. the House. The Post’s Suresh Raj Neupane caught up with Gyawali to PHOTO: FOREIGN MINISTRY/TWITTER What kind of discussions are know about this visit, his agendas and Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali expected with India regarding priorities. Covid-19 vaccines? The interview has been condensed tant. Given the way our relations have for clarity. gone through in the recent past, I India has conducted successful trials believe this meeting will not only help of two vaccines. I would like to con- What expectations do you have from restore the ties to the previous state gratulate the government of India and the meeting? but also open the doors for further the scientists involved. We believe that enhancing them. I have come here Nepal should take the benefit of the The Joint Commission’s meeting is with the objective of making Nepal- vaccines developed in India. And we being held after a gap. That the meet- India relations even stronger based on have made a request accordingly. ing is taking place in itself is impor- trust. I believe our Indian friends too >> Continued on page 3 Lost and never found: Hundreds of children, more girls than boys, go missing every year The majority of children who go missing are eventually found but stakeholders fear all those who go missing are vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation. CHANDAN KUMAR MANDAL Year Total lost children Boys Girls Search ongoing Found KATHMANDU, JAN 14 2017-18 2,330 923 1,407 1,018 43.7% 2018-19 3,422 1,051 2,371 882 74.23% Last week, the border city of Birgunj was rocked after two children went 2019-20 2,729 690 1529 510 81.31% missing. The two sixth graders did not return home after their tutorial dren anywhere. happen to them. We are middle-class classes on Saturday morning. Apparently, both children had families and worried how we could “At first we thought that he must crossed the border and reached the have even managed if there had been have stayed out playing cricket as it Indian city of Patna—more than demands for ransom.” was Saturday,” father of one of the 200km away. Not every family is as fortunate as children told the Post, requesting ano- “They crossed the border, took a bus these two from Birgunj. nymity. and reached Patna after midnight. A 16-year-old boy, originally from Family members, neighbours and They slept in the bus,” said the Mahottari, has gone missing from the local police looked everywhere for father. “After roaming around near Duwakot, Bhaktapur, for more than a them but there was no sign of the chil- the bus park on Sunday morning, they month now. got scared and approached a According to S., the missing boy’s nearby police station seeking uncle who did not want his identity to help. The police then called be disclosed, they have no information his mum.” of his whereabouts. Family members, along with “He has been missing since the Nepal Police personnel, rushed afternoon of December 8,” said S. “We to bring back the children. Both have filed a missing person of them made it home on report with the police, inspected Monday. CCTV footage and called our relatives “We had given up our hope and friends. However, we have not that we would get our kids back,” heard any news about him. The said the father. “People were tell- family is going through tremendous ing us that our kids might have emotional stress.” been kidnapped. Anything could >> Continued on page 2 C M Y K FRIDAY, JANUARY 15, 2021 | 02 NATIONAL As Gyawali lands in Delhi, India ... One dead, three injured at the hands >> Continued from page 1 talks with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar. After Nepal protested against India’s inclu- An announcement on India’s Covid-19 vac- sion of Kalapani within its borders, Delhi had cine support is likely, according to officials said the Indian political map “accurately familiar with the preparations. depicts the sovereign territory of India”. Two Indian companies have manufactured of faith healers in Gulmi district “The new map has in no manner revised our Covid-19 vaccines and India is likely to provide boundary with Nepal,” said Raveesh Kumar, some doses in grant. who was the spokesperson for India’s Ministry “Procuring Covid-19 vaccine from India at a A 64-year-old man was fatally burned and beaten in the name of treatment. of External Affairs, at a regular press briefing subsidised rate and easing the procurement on November 7, 2019. “The boundary delinea- process is a high priority for the Nepali side,” MADHAV ARYAL tion exercise with Nepal is ongoing under the said the official. “This will be communicated to PALPA, JAN 14 existing mechanism.” the Indian side during the meeting.” After Nepal published the new political map Nepal has been looking for at least 12 million An elderly man died after a faith depicting Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura doses of Covid-19 vaccine to inoculate 20 per- healer couple burned parts of his within its borders, Delhi called the move “car- cent (or 6 million) of its population and is plan- body and thrashed him in the tographic assertion”.