Thursday, May 1, 2008

India constructs road in no man’s land

BY JITENDRA KHADGA
RAJBIRAJ: India has started constructing a road, encroaching the no man's land on the Nepali side at bordering Chhinnamasta VDC-3 of Saptari district.
The road being constructed under the Prime Minister's Rural Road Program linking Ram Manohar Lohiya Gate and the Indian village of Nyaur has encroached 5 meters of Nepali land inside border pillar number 228/1. According to road builder Shiv Narayan Yadav, the road will be black-topped upon completion of the gravel path.
The under-construction road, which is 7 meters wide and 2 meters high, will stop the natural flow of rivers and rain water during monsoon, posing flood threats to bordering Nepali villages including Lalapatti and Chhinnamasta.
When local journalists reached the construction site upon hearing the news, the Indian Seema Suraksha Bal (SSB) prohibited photos of the road construction.
Armed police superintendent, Kamal Giri, said, "Construction of the road has breached the International Border Treaty." "Higher authorities have been informed on the issue and it will be taken up with Indian authorities as well," Giri added. Only last year, India had launched construction of a 7 km long and 15 ft high dam at Harkatti of Siraha district encroaching the no man's land. The construction was halted midway after more than half a dozen bordering villages in Nepal were flooded.

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