China ruins Nepal’s Dussehra, Blocks borders after ‘Anti-China’ protest in Nepal

The Dashain festival is the Nepali version of the Vijaya Dashami or Dussehra festival of Hindus, and it is the biggest festival for Nepali-Hindus.

Sweety Rani’s report, Ranchi: China’s expansionist policies have become a huge concern for countries. While the Chinese authorities is trying to gain control over other countries using various methods like debt trap and its Belt and Road Initiative, the country is trying to gain territories in its neighbouring countries, like its aggression seen in Ladakh in India.
China’s neighbour country Nepal is also seeing a similar situation, leading to regular anti-China protests in the country. But China has decided to retaliate against Nepal for anti-China sentiments in the Himalayan nation, and as a result, the upcoming Dashain festival is becoming a victim. This is because, China has completely shut down its trading points with Nepal, which means Nepalese traders can’t import essential items from China. In the guise of COVID 19, China has been imposing strict restrictions on trade for 2 years, but limited trade was still taking place. But last month, the Chinese government closed the Tatopani and Rasuwagadhi border points completely, putting a complete halt on bilateral trade through the two main trade points.

This decision comes as a big setback for Nepalese traders who will be incurring losses worth millions of Nepalese rupees ahead of the Dashain festival. The Dashain festival is the Nepali version of the Vijaya Dashami or Dussehra festival of Hindus, and it is the biggest festival for Nepali-Hindus. Traders do hefty business during the festival, but due to the blockade by China, they don’t have much to sell.
And This will be the third year in a row when the Dashain festival in Nepal will be ruined due to economic blockades by China.

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More than 300 Nepal-bound container trucks with goods worth billions of rupees, imported for the upcoming Dashain festival, were stranded at the checkpoints on the northern border when China announced the shutdown of the border trade points. Chinese officials say that the borders have been closed due to the increase in COVID-19 cases in Tibet. But coincidently, the blockade comes after anti-China protests in Nepal over the last few weeks. Nepalese activist groups are protesting against China alleging encroachment of Nepalese territory.
Anti-China protests by Nepalese activists are not the only reason China is unhappy with Nepal, another matter is the presence of Tibetan refugees in the country. The refugees also hold anti-China protests from time to time, which might have angered the Chinese govt.