Kathmandu, December 30

Minister of Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali today said the government was doing necessary homework to fix a date for holding dialogue with India on border-related issues in the Kalapani region.

Stating that he could not reveal the details of India’s response, Gyawali said the response suggested realisation of problem and urgency to resolve it. “We are doing homework to fix a date for dialogue,” Gyawali said at an event to launch the ministry’s annual report.

According to Gyawali, Nepal has communicated to India that if the official dialogue begins at the earliest, dissatisfaction seen in the streets will flow through the official channel. “If the talks do not take place, issues of criticisms crop up, which is not desirable,” he said.

The issue surfaced after India, on November 2, issued its new political map depicting the Kalapani region as its territory. Both Nepal and India claim Kalapani as their territory.

After criticism from various quarters, the government issued a statement on November 6 saying it was clear about the fact that the Kalapani region was Nepali territory. Stating that any outstanding issues related to the border should be resolved on the basis of mutual agreement, the government said Nepal did not accept any decision taken unilaterally.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli organised an all-party meet on November 9 which decided that the issue should be resolved through diplomatic channels.

Subsequently, the government on November 20 forwarded a diplomatic note to the Indian government, requesting to hold dialogue on the matter. The Indian government then responded in the third week of December, offering to hold dialogue at a convenient date.