PTI
June 22, 2015
Around 40 Indian pilgrims, bound for the spiritual Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, will on Monday cross over from Nathu La Pass on the Sikkim-Tibet border, a route that remained closed for more than a half-century following the 1962 Sino-India war.
The Chinese Ambassador to India Le Yucheng will receive the first batch of Indian pilgrims in Tibet.
Yucheng, who arrived in Gangtok, Sikkim’s capital, on Saturday evening, crossed over to Tibet on Sunday where he stayed overnight to recieve the pilgrims today, official sources said.
On Sunday, Yucheng called on Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Chamling and briefed him about the arrangements made for receiving the Yatris in the Tibet Autonomous Region, they said.
During the meeting, the Chinese Ambassador recalled the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to China this year which was preceeded by Chinese President Xi Jinping’s trip to India in September last year, they said.
Yucheng, who crossed over to Tibet through Nathu La pass with four other Chinese officials, would be staying overnight in a tourist hut and will receive 39 Indian pilgrims, besides BJP MP Tarun Vijay and his wife in the morning. One pilgrim will not make it as he forgot to carry his passport.
The new route through the Himalayan pass will facilitate more comfortable travel for the Indian pilgrims, especially the elderly, by buses compared to the existing route via Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand.
This batch will complete Manasarovar Parikrama (circumambulation) on June 27 and ‘Kailash Parikrama’, 16,600 feet above sea level, on June 28 before returning to the Indian side on July three.
The journey will be mainly covered through bus with only a little of trekking.
Kailash Mansarovar is believed to be the seat of Hindu god Shiva. Pilgrims have to travel to high altitudes through inhospitable and rugged terrain. Hundreds go on the pilgrimage every year, with a part of the journey overseen by Chinese authorities.
Nathu La, which means “Mountain pass with listening ears”, was closed after 1962 Sino-Indian war. The area had witnessed week-long skirmishes between the Indian and Chinese Army. After remaining closed for all activities, the pass was opened as a trading junction in 2006. Traders from both sides gathered in the No-Man’s Land and sold their items.
However, due to limited number of items including goat and sheep skin, raw silk, china clay, butter, common salt, cycles, tea, cigarette, the trading point has been receiving a lukewarm response from traders of the two countries.
