Kathmandu. The news of China’s encroachment in the Humla district of Nepal made headlines in the recent times. Reports poured in claiming that a border pillar was missing in the area and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was sighted patrolling the land. The Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu, in the light of such discussions gaining traction in the media released a statement claiming that it had verified that the land was theirs, mentioning that Nepal was free to conduct its own study in the area.

The Foreign Minister, Pradeep Kumar Gyawali in a press brief on Wednesday proclaimed that the land where China was building its structures was within Beijing’s own territorial jurisdiction. He mentioned the necessity of an official government stance on the concerned matter. Pointing towards similar reports of encroachment that had emerged in 2016, he claimed that “The team from Home Ministry, Foreign Ministry and Department of Survey had then reported that the houses were built on the Chinese side, one kilometer inside from the Nepal-China border. This time, the report so far also came that the houses were built in the same place as reported earlier.”

Gyawali stated that a team from the District Administration Office, Humla had left for further study on the matter and the government would wait for a more concrete evaluation before giving out more details. He noted that Kathmandu and Beijing had always respected the border treaty and protocols and that, “In case any such problem surfaces we have cordial relations to discuss it and resolve it.”