The Nepal-China northern trade border, Tatopani, has been completely closed since Monday following a massive fire that broke out last night in the border forest areas of Nyalam and Khasa regions of China.

According to Sindhupalchowk Chief District Officer Ram Krishna Adhikari, the Chinese administration has informed that the border crossing will not be able to operate from Monday as the fire that started in the Chobin area including the central part of Nyalam and Khasa on Sunday night has not been brought under control. 

‘The border crossing has been closed as the severe fire in a large forest area has not yet been brought under control. Efforts are being made to extinguish the fire using helicopters,’ the Chief District Officer said. 
The impact of the fire has also affected all communication services across the border crossing, the Chief District Officer informed, quoting Chinese security personnel. 

As the fire is uncontrolled, there is a risk that it may spread to the upper mountain areas of Nepal and the area around Kharan Pokhari, which are connected to the border crossing. According to locals, the fire has spread rapidly in the forest area along the Chinese border. Chinese security personnel have also reported that fire has been seen in the upper areas of the Tatopani border crossing. 

‘We have requested the Chinese side to provide drone images to understand the real situation, and work is also underway to understand the Gaurishankar Conservation Area,’ he said. 

Police Inspector Jagat Bahadur Rai of the Area Police Office Kodari said that as the fire spread, the Chinese administration has tightened the restrictions on the movement of locals and tourists through the border crossing, citing security reasons.  ‘A large forest area has been destroyed by the fire, and the sky in the Liping and Tatopani areas is covered with smoke and ash.  The fire has not yet been brought under control,’ he said. 

Locals said that if the Chinese side fails to control the fire in time, the fire could spread to Nepali territory. Keeping in mind the potential risk, the Nepali side has also increased surveillance around the border crossing.

The exact details of the damage caused by the fire have not been made public.  Earlier, when the Rasuwagadhi border crossing was closed since 24 Ashad, most of the trade with China was conducted through the Tatopani border crossing. But now that this border crossing has also been blocked, containers carrying goods worth crores of rupees are stuck on both sides. The closure of the border crossing has made businessmen and importers worried.

Four hundred containers stuck in Chinese territory
According to Buddharaj Basnet, president of the Sindhupalchowk Chamber of Commerce and Industry, nearly four hundred containers carrying goods worth crores of rupees are stranded on the roads of Khasa, Nyalam and the Rism area in China after the border crossing was blocked after the fire.

He said that the border crossing was blocked after the fire as the containers that were supposed to enter in Barkha have not yet arrived. “There was a fire at a place called Pan Singh, 4 kilometers above Khasa, due to which tourists going to China through the Tatopani border crossing have been sent back to Kathmandu. Meanwhile, the traders are in further pain as the containers that were stuck in Barkha have not yet arrived. It is not known how long this blockade will last,” Basnet said.

The Bahrabise-Tatopani (26-kilometer) road is dusty in summer and muddy in rainy season, making it a trap for containers coming and going.  The quarantine, parking lot, road connecting Khasa and tunnel, which were destroyed by the flood across Miteri Bridge, were being built in Khasa, along with a smart city.