The Tatopani crossing will be closed for a week to repair the Koplan section of the Bahrbise-Tatopani road, which was washed away by the rain a week and a half ago. Due to the rains, the Kodari highway connecting the border, which was blocked due to the 15-feet road flooding in Bhotekoshi rural municipality-2 Koplang, has not yet been put into operation.

According to Amit Shrestha, Head of Road Division Office, Charikot, it has been decided to close the checkpoint from Sunday to next June 3 for road maintenance. "Currently, the plum slope work is being done from Bhotekoshi river under the road," he said. 

Shiv Khimti and TPS JV are doing the repair work, he said. Since there is no alternative way to go to customs there, hundreds of containers carrying materials worth crores are stuck in the Liping market area and Khasa. In which there are 40 containers carrying apples and garlic and more than 400 electric vehicles.

There is a dire situation among the locals as the roads damaged by earthquakes and floods are dilapidated every day before the monsoon. Chief District Officer of Sindhupalchok Kiran Thapa said that since there is no other alternative route to connect Tatopani to Bahrbise, the road had to be closed and the road repaired.

Last week, an electric car fell into a river and the driver was injured while trying to forcefully cross a dangerous road. Buddharaj Basnet, president of Sindhupalchok Industry and Commerce Association, said that only 14/15 containers carrying goods from China used to enter, but due to road blockage at Kodari Vegchheu, the containers returning with goods were also stranded. It is sad that the condition of the road is like this without rain. Now, because of the road, the container is stopped on the way, and the businessmen have become more vulnerable," he said. According to him, goods worth 526,000 dollars imported from China for the Parsyurli-Virganj 152 KV transmission line have also been stopped on the way. 

Earlier, after the Belibridge was swept away by the flood, the unpaved roads in Liping and Larcha were forced to be dangerous. Now a belay bridge has been connected in Liping and the work of placing a belay bridge in Larcha is going on. Along with the problem of late arrival of goods from China, the traders complain that the transportation costs are expensive as the roads in Khasa and Tatopani are blocked from time to time due to floods. The border businessmen have been complaining that the road division did not accept the proposal of the businessmen to build an alternative road by spending private money.

_{After the 15-feet road in Bhotekoshi Rural Municipality-2 Koplang of Sindhupalchok was closed for repair, the electric vehicles were stranded in Liping area. Photo: Anish Tiwari/Kantipur}