Nepalgunj Customs Office resumes service, 98 vehicles carrying goods, petroleum enter

By Siraj Khan,Nepalgunj, Sept.14: Nepalgunj Customs Office, the largest customs point in western Nepal, has resumed services since Friday.

As life in Banke district, including Nepalgunj, which was disrupted and affected by the Gen-Z movement, is returning to normal, the Nepalgunj Customs Office said that the vehicles have started being sent to Nepalgunj after clearing customs of essential goods from the ICP located here.

Nepalgunj Customs Officer and Information Officer Pabitra Kumar Khadka said that 98 vehicles carrying essential goods, including petroleum products, vegetables and food grains, were cleared through customs on Friday and sent to Nepalgunj.

He said that 38 trucks carrying petroleum products, which were stopped after arson and vandalism started around when they were about to enter Nepalgunj after clearing customs on Wednesday, were sent first.

All the vehicles, including those in the ICP were sent to the Indian side of the border in Rupaidiha on Wednesday for security. 

Information Officer Khadka said that after the situation normalised, work is underway to send vehicles to Nepalgunj after customs clearance.

He said that 98 vehicles have been sent after completing the customs process, up from 38 vehicles which customs cleared on Tuesday and 60 on Friday.

During the Gen-Z movement, the old customs office in Jayaspur and the passenger branch at the Jamunaha checkpoint were completely burnt down, but no damage was done to the ICP.

Information officer Khadka said all documents, computers, and hundreds of vehicles kept for auction were burned and destroyed because the old customs office was used for case management.

He said that revenue collection from Nepalgunj border stands between Rs. 40 million and Rs. 60 million daily, but the customs office was closed for two days, which affected revenue collection.