Thieves lift railway motor points, Customs Yard without power

By Nawaraj Kattel,Biratnagar, Nov. 25: Following the signing of the revised protocol to the Nepal-India Transit Treaty, there has been excitement over the possibility of cargo trains reaching the Integrated Check Post (ICP) in Biratnagar-18.

However, despite the agreement, the situation on the ground shows no sign that trains will arrive any time soon. The railway line from Bathanaha in India to the ICP near the Nepal Customs Yard is ready, but several obstacles remain.

On Monday, iron industry operators from the Sunsari-Morang Industrial Corridor unloaded containers carrying billets and other goods at the Indian Inland Clearance Depot (ICD) located next to the Biratnagar ICP.

The ICD lies only about one kilometre from the Nepal Customs Yard, a distance a train could cover in less than five minutes. But several motor points -- electrical devices required to switch the railway tracks -- on the Nepali side have been stolen. 

Shivaji Mandal, a staff member of the railway company stationed to oversee the Nepal Customs Yard, said thieves had broken the motor points and stolen copper and brass wires.

The motor points are connected to the control room inside the Customs Yard and are used to divert trains onto one of the four available tracks, depending on where cargo needs to be unloaded. For example, when the control room sets the system to Track No. 4, the motor point adjusts the rail alignment accordingly.

As thefts of railway equipment increased, a temporary police post was set up in Bhediyari. However, thieves struck even earlier in the evening, before night patrols began. 

According to Mandal, all six motor points in and around the Nepal Customs Yard have been dismantled and stolen. In addition, the Customs Yard has been without electricity for almost 10 months, as an outstanding electricity bill of Rs. 4 million remains unpaid. The temporary police post currently draws electricity from a nearby private house.

The construction of the railway track along the 7-kilometre stretch from Bathanaha to the Nepal Customs Yard has been completed. For remaining sections, the Indian company IRCON has called for fresh tenders. Mandal also reported that, after resolving land disputes around the final station at Katahari-1, fencing work has begun.

Laxmi Subba of Trans Freight Nepal, the agency managing the ICP, said no one has yet approached them with information about bringing cargo via rail despite the treaty revision. She said her company is also keen to know when cargo arrivals will begin, as Trans Nepal will handle freight and unloading once cargo starts arriving by rail.

Amit Sharada of Sharada Group, which operates a major refined oil industry in the Sunsari-Morang Industrial Corridor, said they were preparing to import crude oil up to the Indian ICD. 

However, he stressed that handling and unloading charges must be revised on the Nepali side before cargo begins arriving via rail. He said Trans Nepal’s fees in Nepal are currently higher than those at the Indian ICD. 

Even an additional 50 paisa per kilogram for a 2,000-tonne rack would significantly increase costs, he said. Therefore, handling and unloading charges should be equal on both sides. Sharada added that if the fees differ, cargo will naturally be unloaded at whichever point -- ICD or ICP -- is cheaper, even though the two facilities are only about 500 metres apart.

The revised transit treaty allows all types of goods imported from third countries to be brought to Nepal via Kolkata and Visakhapatnam ports entirely by rail. While this has made things easier for eastern Nepal, several unresolved issues still need attention.