The Birgunj Integrated Check Post (ICP) will be formallyinaugurated on Saturday.

Prime Ministers of Nepal and India will jointlyinaugurate the ICP through video conferencing, according to Laxman PrasadBasnet, executive director of Nepal Intermodal Transport Development Board. “Wewill be inaugurating Birgunj ICP on Saturday. And this will be done by thePrime Ministers of Nepal and India,” Basnet confirmed.

As part of his first international visit, Prime MinisterKP Sharma Oli is leaving for New Delhi on Friday on a three-day official visitto India. 

On the second day of the visit, Prime Minister Oli ofNepal and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India will jointly inaugurate the ICPfrom New Delhi itself via video conference, according to Chandra Kumar Ghimire,secretary of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies.   

“Birgunj customs point handles 60-65 percent of totaltrade between Nepal and India. Yet we are doing trade via a route that is atleast a century old,” he said, adding: “The Birgunj ICP is equipped with someof the most advanced technologies and is unlike any that the country has. Andthis will greatly help in supporting and systematizing the bilateral trade.”

According to Ghimire, the ICP will provide 'one-windowservice' wherein a plethora of services like immigration, customs, quarantine,and banks as well as security check posts are available at the same place.Unlike the existing modus operandi at the Birgunj customs point, importers andexporters can complete paper works and fees before containers arrive at thecheck post.

The ICP in the Nepali side is spread over 15 bigaha ofland in Alau of Parsa district. It was built with an investment of Rs 5billion. The Indian side of the ICP was completed a year ago itself. It isspread over 110 bigaha of land. 

Ghimire added that the Ministry of Industry, Commerce andSupplies has been working on close co-ordination with the Ministry of Financeand other concerned authorities to shift the customs office and other relatedauthorities within the ICP premises.      

Source : My Republica, 6^th April 2018