Nepal-India Border Disputes: Mahakali and Susta

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A book on Nepal-India border disputes, particularly one devoted to Mahakali and Susta, needs no explanation. Both the disputes date back to 1816 when the Sugauli Treaty that defines Nepal's borders with India, was concluded. Off and on the disputes have come under public attention. The publication of the new political map of India by the Survey of India in early November 2019, which incorporated areas east of the Kali River, including Kalapani, as Indian territory, brought renewed public, and political attention to the border issue with India.

It was at this juncture that a concerned citizens movement to save the borders named Seema Bachau Abhiyan was launched. It undertook the task of preparing a map of Nepal based on the Sugauli Treaty and related supplementary treaties to educate the public and at the same time spur the Nepal Government to action. The new map prepared by the Abhiyan was formally launched at a press meet at the Reporter's Club, Kathmandu on 24 November 2019. The effort of the Abhiyan was vindicated when in 2020 the Government of Nepal officially published the new political and administrative map of Nepal incorporating all areas cast of the Mahakali River.

In the course of the preparation of the new map there was a realization that the publication of the map alone was not enough and there was a need to examine the Nepal India border disputes in Mahakali and Susta from various perspectives for a more nuanced appreciation of the issues. This book is the product of that realization and is based on a voluntary, cooperative effort in shedding light on an issue that has been at the forefront of Nepal-India relations for the better part of two centuries.

A book on Nepal-India border disputes, particularly one devoted to Mahakali and Susta, needs no explanation. Both the disputes date back to 1816 when the Sugauli Treaty that defines Nepal's borders with India was concluded. Time and again the disputes have come under public attention. Popular press in Nepal has covered the issues as and when events of political or strategic significance unfold or when there are clashes and altercations in specific areas.

At the political and technical levels mechanisms for demarcating the border and sorting out issues in light of their historic evolution have been created, but for the most part these have largely been overshadowed by inaction at the political levels. India's intransigence has made it impossible to even take up the matter for discussion, much less the search for a resolution. The Indian attitudes towards the disputes remaining as they are it is quite likely that the disputes that have simmered on for the last two centuries could continue on for the foreseeable future.

In the last few decades some books and a number of articles, mainly in Nepali, have appeared in the popular press on the border disputes in Mahakali and Susta. The issue of the origin of the Mahakali River in the north-western border was publicly raised during the ratification of the Mahakali Treaty in 1996. Since then, a few professional papers have appeared in the English language from both within and outside Nepal by Nepali scholars and a few by outsiders. The publication of the new political map of India by the Survey of India in early November 2019, which incorporated areas east of the Kali River, including Kalapani, as Indian territory brought renewed public, and political, attention to the Mahakali dispute.

It was at this juncture that the late Swanam Sathi (aka Sashi Sherchan) organized a meeting of concerned citizens to form a movement to save the borders named Seema Bachau Abhiyan. Coordinated by Swanam Sathi it brought together citizens of standing from various walks of life to raise awareness regarding the border problems and exert pressure on the Government of Nepal to seriously take up the matter with the Government of India. Under the auspices of the Seema Bachau Abhiyan the initial. task identified was to prepare a map of Nepal based on the Sugauli Treaty and related supplementary treaties to educate the public and at the same time spur the Nepal Government to action.

Accordingly, a Map Committee was constituted under the chairmanship of senior journalist Bhairav Risal. It included former administrator Dwarika Nath Dhungel, former diplomat Hiranya Lal Shrestha, former heads of the Department of Survey of the Government of Nepal Punya Prasad Oli and Buddhi Narayan Shrestha (both in absentia), hydrologist Jagat Kumar Bhusal, geographers Narendra Raj Khanal, Sher Bahadur Gurung and Komal Chandra Baral, and social activists Swanam Sathi, Shyam Shrestha (in absentia), and Rabindra Kumar Shrestha. The task of constructing the map using the latest technology was entrusted to a team including Prof. Narendra Raj Khanal, Asst.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages