Border port reopens between China, Nepal

A reopening ceremony for the Zham-Tatopani Border Port was held by China and Nepal in Nyalam county in Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region on May 29.

The port was closed due to a devastating earthquake in Nepal and some parts of Tibet on Apr 25, 2015.

In order to restore the freight transportation function of the port, Chinese government departments at all levels have invested huge manpower, material resources and intelligence, and have done a lot of work in geological disaster management, road repair, port reconstruction, and water conservancy project construction. Government departments at all levels in Nepal have cooperated closely and contributed to the smooth progress of various projects.

On the reopening day, four Nepalese trucks were loaded with cargo and moved smoothly across the Friendship Bridge, arousing huge applause on the site.

A Nepalese truck driver, Kemar, said that it is very admirable for China to overcome the problem of geological disaster management and complete the project that looked almost impossible in such a short period of time. He is grateful to the Chinese government and people.

The Zham-Tatopani port is located in an alpine valley  where geological conditions are complex and changeable, and natural disasters occur frequently. Before the end of 2019, the port is in trial operation, and only handles general and small-scale border trade.

Li Zhaoping, director of the port management office of Tibet, said that if the trial operation is successful, those trades can be normalized.