The Sikkim government has decided to urge the Centre to suspend trade with China through the Nathu-la border route for an indefinite period in view of the coronavirus pandemic.
The trade is scheduled to start on May 1.
B.S. Panth, the commerce and industry minister of Sikkim, said the Himalayan state had in principle decided against reopening the Nathu-la trade route and would approach the Centre in a day or two in this regard.
“As you all know, China is the epicentre of the coronavirus, and in such a situation, we have decided against reopening the border trade. Since this is a matter of international relationship, we will intimate the Union government of our decision,” he told reporters on Wednesday.
A senior state government official said the Centre would certainly heed Sikkim’s request and suspend the trade this year.
Sikkim is the only Covid-19-free state in the country.
The annual Nathu-la trade takes place for seven months from May 1 to November 30. However, goods are traded for only four days of the week: Monday to Thursday. About 500 traders and over 300 vehicles from the state are engaged in the border trade that resumed in 2006, 44 years after it had been closed following the Chinese aggression in 1962.
The Sikkim government’s push for the trade’s suspension has been welcomed by the merchants. “No, we were not consulted by the government before taking the decision, but we welcome it. We cannot possibly risk the lives of our people. Business can resume when things return to normal,” said Tenzing Tsepel, the secretary of the Indo-China Border Trade Association.
Warehouse hunt
A five-member team of Sikkim ministers on Wednesday visited Rangpo and surrounding areas to identify warehouses that could be used to store essential commodities from outside for at least a couple of days before they were made available in local markets.
Official sources said all essential items entering Sikkim would be disinfected at the warehouse.
The places the team visited included Thalthaley in South Sikkim, ITI complex at Mining and the cold storage facility of the Sikkim State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd (SIMFED) at Majhitar.
