Prolonged closure of Tiptala transit hits local economy

PHUNGLING, AUGUST 29: The Tiptala transit at Olangchung Gola in Taplejung district has remained closed for the past four years, affecting the local people by halting the trade between them and neighboring China and limiting their mobility. The border crossing was closed to stop the spread of COVID-19 following the request of the Government of China shortly after Chinese workers returned home from road construction on the Nepal side. For this, the Riu administration in Nepal was requested to close the transit point, citing the risk of the spread of the virus in China through the open border.

Residents of the bordering areas – Yanga, Thudam, Olangchung Gola, and Topkegola – are dependent on the Chinese market for their essentials, as Phungling, the district headquarters, is not accessible due to flooding and landslides during the rainy season. Ninety percent of the people of Olangchung Gola in Phaktanglung-7, as well as Yanga and Ghunsa, depend on the Chinese market for their daily necessities, according to a local resident, Chheten Tanshi Sherpa.

"Due to the closure of the transit for a long time, food and other essentials have stopped being supplied from China. From salt for yak to other essentials, we are not able to bring essential commodities," he said. Following the closure of the crossing, the trade with China has come to a halt," said Chheten Walung, the ward chair of Phaktanglung Rural Municipality-7.

Situated at an altitude of 3,200 meters above sea level, the main businesses of the Olangchung Gola community are trade and animal husbandry. Similarly, the community of Yanga, situated at an elevation of 4,200 meters above sea level, depended on the Chinese market for their daily necessities.

As a result of the prolonged closure of the crossing, they have been transporting food items from Phungling," said Jiten Chemjong, the assistant program coordinator for the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area Management Council. "In the past, the Yanga community had been dependent on the Chinese market. As the border has been closed for an extended period, they have started relying on the Nepali market," he said.

The closure of the crossing has created an economic crisis for the locals, he added. According to Tenzing Walung, the assistant ward office of Phaktaglung-7, yaks, cattle, animals, dairy products, and carpets produced in the Nepali villages are sold in various markets in China. "The border has been closed for the past four years. Trade with China has been halted. Without the operation of business, income sources have drastically decreased," he said.

Due to the lack of a market for the livestock business and animal products, the traders are experiencing a financial crisis," he added. The people of Olangchung Gola had been earning a good income by selling carpets in the Chinese market. However, their carpets have been piled up at home for the past four years," said a local resident, Lama Bhujung Sherpa. "There are 50 carpets piled up in my house. Selling carpets in the Phungling bazaar fetches a low price. So I have kept them at home."

Many villagers are being forced to bring the produced carpets to Phungling and sell them at a lower price than the cost of production," he said. Similarly, Chiraito (a medicinal herb), produced in various places in Ilam, Panchthar, Tehrathum, and Taplejung districts,  could not be transported to China through Olangchung Gola. So, the traders haad to transport it to Sikkim, India, through Phungling, incurring a loss in transportation," said a local entrepreneur, Dawachungdak Sherpa.

This has disappointed the Chiraito farmers of Taplejung, Panchthar, Ilam, and Tehrathum districts," said Man Kumar Rai, a local farmer from Yamphudin in Sirijanga Rural Municipality. "In the past, traders used to visit homes looking for Chiraito, but nowadays, no traders are talking about it," he said.

After Chiraito stopped being supplied to China, the farmers have stopped cultivating the medicinal herb," said Raj Kumar Rai, a farmer from Phaktanglung-6. It costs Rs 100 per kilogram of rice to transport a 50-kilogram sack of rice from Phungling to Olangchung Gola, meaning one sack of 50 kilograms of rice costs Rs 5,000 in total," said the ward chair of Phaktanglung-7, Walung.

It takes one day to deliver goods from Phungling to Lelep by vehicle. From Lelep, goods are supplied through mules or people to Olangchung Gola, Yanga, Phale, and Ghunsa at elevations of 3,200 to 4,500 meters above sea level," he said. The cost of transportation is three times more than the value of the goods," he said. Until the crossing was closed, Chinese vehicles used to transport goods from China to the Tiptala border and from there to their homes on their own yaks," he said. "The transportation cost is very low when transporting goods from China. However, it costs three times more than the purchase price to bring goods from Phungling," he said.

Kande Gyabu Sherpa from Yanga had 32 yaks two years ago, but now the number has increased to 64. He could not sell his yaks in the Chinese market due to the closure of the border," he said. "It has been four years since the yaks have not been sold. Yaks and their calves have not been sold since China shut the border due to COVID-19."

The community in the Himalayan region depends on yak rearing for their livelihoods. However, the local people are finding it hard to carry out daily chores due to the lack of yak exports to China," said the local people. Phincho Sherpa has not sold a yak from his yak shed for the past four years. The number of his yaks has increased from 25 four years ago to 60 now. Nepalese yaks, their calves, and dairy products like ghee and churpi made from yak milk fetch good prices in the Chinese market," said Sonam Sherpa from Yanga. A yak is sold for Rs 60,000 to Rs 150,000 in the Chinese market," he said.

Similarly, one kilogram of yak ghee and churpi are sold for Rs 1,200 each. There are over 2,000 yaks being reared in 35 yak sheds in the Tokpekola area," said Dandu Lama, vice chair of Mikkakhola Rural Municipality. People from seven out of nine local levels in the district have been rearing yaks, encouraged by a good income from their export to China," said Pema Sherpa from Ghunsa.

When asked when the situation will ease, Walung, the ward chair of Phaktanglung Rural Municipality-7, said that the Tiptala and Tiptala Bhanjyang transits would resume in one month. The news has brought a wave of happiness to the local people. "Everything will be okay once the transit opens. It will facilitate everyone," said Donga Sherpa from Olangchung Gola. Chief District Officer Goma Devi Chemjong said that the process of opening the crossing has begun. On May 5, 2023, a virtual meeting was held between representatives of Dinggye County in the Tibetan Autonomous Region, China, and Taplejung district regarding the opening of the border.

Earlier, the ward office in Olangchung Gola, Phaktanglung Rural Municipality, and the District Administration Office in Taplejung had repeatedly urged the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to coordinate the opening of the border. According to the ward chair, Walung, the Chinese officials said they would open the border, allowing people's mobility only from Tiptala Bhanjyang. Previously, there was also mobility of people from the Ghangla transit.

Especially, the residents of Yanga used to travel to Riu through the Ghangla border. The residents of the bordering area are now allowed to go only to Riu, which is 25 km away from the border. Tibet has established a trading center in Ghumti, around 35 km away from Riu, targeting Taplejung and Sankhuwasabha in Nepal. The settlement in Olangchung Gola is 24 km away from the border. It takes three days on foot to reach Riu from the settlements in Yangma near the border, but it takes only one day from Olangchung Gola.

Overall, the extended closure of the Tiptala transit has had far-reaching impacts on trade, livelihoods, and economic activities for the local communities that depend on cross-border transactions with China.

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