16.9 C
Athens
Δευτέρα, 4 Νοεμβρίου, 2024

China pushing trans-Himalayan rail project with strategic aims

Περισσότερα Νέα

- Advertisement -

With aims to push rail connectivity to border areas, China is pursuing the Nepal-China Railway Project to fulfil its strategic interests. While China had made rapid progress on rail connectivity within its borders, on the Nepalese side of the border, talk of a trans-Himalayan railway is only political tokenism, reported The HK Post. The Chinese embassy in Kathmandu reportedly conveyed to the Nepalese officials that Beijing was prepared to sign an instrument to facilitate aid for the feasibility study of the proposed China-Nepal Cross Border Railway(CNR) project, connecting Keyrong in Tibet to Kathmandu.

Earlier, the technical study/pre-feasibility study of the proposed 121km railway from Keyrong to Kathmandu was conducted by the China Railway First Survey and Design Institute (CRFSDI) in 2018. The CRFSDI study, which has not been made public, observed that the CNR project was one of the most difficult and risky railway construction projects in the world due to the complex geology such as high terrain, slope instability and the region being prone to high-intensity earthquakes.

The gradient from the Tibetan plateau to the low valleys in Nepal is too steep and the railway inside Nepal would pass through protected areas in Langtang, Rolwaling and Mt Everest regions. The CRFSDI study estimated that it would take nine years and Yuan 30.15 billion (USD 4.7 billion) (equal to Nepal’s total revenue in 2018) to develop the Keyrong-Kathmandu rail track, reported The HK Post.

It also pointed out that the feasibility study to be carried out by studying the inner structure of the land of the CNR route may lead to different/higher estimates. About 98 per cent of the railway on the Nepalese side will consist of tunnels and bridges and the project will cost far more than the present estimation. Similarly, another study, “Feasibility of China-Nepal Railway and Collaborative Construction of Belt and Road by Two Nations”, conducted by Chongyang Institute for Financial studies, Renmin University, pointed that a minimum 40 years would be required to recover the investment in the CNR project.

Further, during the visit (March 25-27) of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Nepal, Nepalese Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba reportedly indicated that his country was not interested in Chinese loans and requested for more grant assistance, reported The HK Post. It appears that Nepal was aware that the Kathmandu-China rail connection would prove to be costly and difficult and Nepal in any case would be unable to bear the financial cost of building a difficult and expensive tunnel across the Himalayas.

- Advertisement -

ΑΠΑΝΤΗΣΤΕ

εισάγετε το σχόλιό σας!
παρακαλώ εισάγετε το όνομά σας εδώ

The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

Ροή ειδήσεων

ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ

Taiwan detects 6 Chinese military aircraft, 9 vessels around territory

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence (MND) reported Chinese military activity near the island on Tuesday and said that by 6 am (local time), six...

China Tries to Blot out Tibetan Criticism of Mining Firm’s Damage to the Environment 

Chinese censors are trying to prevent people from viewing posts that allege severe environmental damage in Tibet caused by sand mining. A young Tibetan man...

Protests erupt in Balochistan as citizens demand justice amid rising violence

Amid ongoing atrocities and lawlessness in Balochistan, a protest took place in Buleda as residents rallied for the immediate arrest of the killers of...

Chinese armed forces are not as strong as they seem, according to experts

China is seen as a formidable power due to its robust economic growth and military expansion in recent decades, but if experts are to...

ΔΗΜΟΦΙΛΗ ΑΡΘΡΑ

Αμπελόκηποι: Γόνος ευκατάστατης οικογένειας ο 36χρονος που διαμελίστηκε στη γιάφκα – Είχε συλληφθεί μαζί με τον 31χρονο στη Γερμανία

Γόνος ευκατάστατης οικογένειας επιστημόνων που μαζί με τον 31χρονο μηχανολόγο – μηχανικό είχαν προσαχθεί και σημανθεί στη Γερμανία για επεισόδια σε πορείες είναι ο...

Αμπελόκηποι: Οι χειρόγραφες σημειώσεις «ξεκλειδώνουν» τις έρευνες της Αντιτρομοκρατικής – 5 κιλά εκρηκτικής ύλης εξερράγησαν

Σε πλήρη εξέλιξη είναι οι έρευνες της Αντιτρομοκρατικής για την έκρηξη αυτοσχέδιας βόμβας στο διαμέρισμα στους Αμπελόκηπους καθώς ήδη ταυτοποιήθηκε ο νεκρός. Από τα αποτυπώματά...

Aμπελόκηποι: «Μεταμφιεσμένοι» τρομοκράτες ετοίμαζαν εντυπωσιακό χτύπημα στην Αθήνα – Βρέθηκαν σχεδιαγράμματα

Νέα διάσταση στις έρευνες της Αντιτρομοκρατικής δίνουν τα ευρήματα απο νέες εφόδους που έγιναν σε τρεις οικίες και ένα όχημα των ατόμων που σχετίζονται...

Διάσταση απόψεων ανάμεσα σε μεγάλα ειδησεογραφικά δίκτυα! Πρίν ή μετά τις αμερικανικές εκλογές η απάντηση του Ιράν;

Οι New York Times, επικαλούμενοι τρεις αξιωματούχους που γνωρίζουν τον πολεμικό σχεδιασμό του Ιράν, ανέφεραν ότι η επίθεση θα γίνει μετά τις 5 Νοεμβρίου...