Fiscal Nepal
First Business News Portal in English from Nepal
KATHMANDU: China has lifted its five-year COVID-19 ban on the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage, allowing Indian pilgrims to resume travel from June 1, 2025, via Nepal’s Himalayan border points, a month earlier than routes through India. The decision, favoring Nepal’s shorter and more accessible Rasuwa and Humla crossings over India’s Uttarakhand, has energized Nepali tourism operators, who anticipate a boost to the economy.
The Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA) hailed the move as a significant opportunity. “After five years, this is a promising sign for Nepal’s economy,” said NATTA Chairman Kumarmani Thapaliya. The Association of Kailash Tour Operators, representing 40 Nepali agencies, confirmed that Tibetan authorities have authorized Indian pilgrims to enter via Nepal starting June 1. “We’ll soon finalize agreements with two Tibetan agencies to manage the pilgrimage,” said Chairman Bimal Naharki.
Pre-COVID, Nepal facilitated 20,000 Indian pilgrims in 2019, offering 14-day packages starting at NPR 125,000 ($900). Most traveled via Rasuwa’s Kerung, with others using Humla’s Hilsa by air and road. India’s subsidies of INR 25,000-100,000 ($300-1,200) per pilgrim made Nepal’s land routes more cost-effective than flights from India. The pilgrimage, halted since 2020, was greenlit after a March 2025 India-China meeting in Beijing.
However, India’s plan to route 250 pilgrims through Nepal’s Lipulekh Pass without Kathmandu’s consent has ignited tensions. India’s Foreign Ministry announced five 50-pilgrim groups will travel via Lipulekh and 10 via Sikkim’s Nathula from June to August 2025, using a 200-km trekking route through Nepal’s territory.
Nepal’s Foreign Ministry, unaware of any India-China agreement, expressed concern over the unilateral decision. Lipulekh, 56 km inside Nepal’s border, has been contentious since a 2015 India-China trade deal ignored Nepal’s sovereignty.
Nepali operators, who have facilitated the pilgrimage since 1995, are preparing for an influx of pilgrims, but the Lipulekh issue underscores ongoing geopolitical frictions. Nepal’s Foreign Ministry is seeking clarification from India and China as the pilgrimage season nears.
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