Nepal is a changed country, it is no longer the same Himalayan nation that welcomed Chinese investment with a ruling party getting progressively closer to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Hou Yanqi used to be a frequent guest at ex-Nepal PM KP Sharma Oli’s office and official residence. But Yanqi no longer gets the same level of hospitality that she once used to get in Nepal during Oli’s rule.
Chinese investments getting dumped
Over 90 percent of Chinese projects in Nepal are said to have got stalled in the past 6-7 months, despite intense lobbying and meetings by Hou Yanqi.
The Chinese Ambassador has thus lost her mojo. Chinese investment in Nepal continues to face sharp resistance from Nepalese locals. Many citizens of Nepal don’t perceive Beijing’s promises regarding infrastructure advancement. They feel that they are harming Nepalese interests and benefitting only Beijing.
As per Singapore Post, the challenges faced by Chameliya Hydropower Project, which was constructed by China in the Darchula district of Nepal, includes delays in project execution that led to cost overruns. This is the most significant setback for China as the 30 MW Chameliya Hydropower Project is one of the costliest Chinese projects in the country.
Singapore Post reported, “The run-of-the-river project was initiated in 2010 and took 10 years to complete, against the target of three years. Also, the cost of Chameliya, initially estimated at Nepali Rs 6 million escalated to Nepali Rs 16 million. Of late, the Chinese company functioning as the civil contractor for the project, China Gezhouba Group (CGGC) has raised a number of issues with Nepal on the HPP.”
Nepal has also given up on a Chinese aircraft after realising that it was of low quality with heavy maintenance costs and high debt burden.
Sher Bahadur Deuba- the man who is ending Chinese bonhomie in Nepal
Nepalese Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and his government are the ones who are kicking Chinese investments out of their country.
The Nepal Communist Party government had tried to move closer to Beijing, when Oli was the country’s PM. It had manufactured border issues with India and invoked irredentism to help Beijing.
Deuba’s Nepali Congress along with its five coalition partners recently rolled out a common minimum programme (CMP). The CMP emphasizes the need to resolve issues with India relating to the Limpiyadhura, Kalapani and Lipulek region through diplomatic means.
Udaya Shumsher Rana, former minister of state for finance and a member of Nepali Congress stated, “Nepal, under this government, will be interested in maintaining good relations with all its neighbours. Nepal needs Beijing, and China has been a good neighbour to us, but India will remain special, China cannot replace India.”
Deuba’s India visit- another setback for Beijing
Deuba governemnt’s closer ties with India are directly hurting China. Deuba is all set to visit India and attend the Vibrant Gujarat Summit. According to former Ambassador of Nepal to India Deep Kumar Upadhyay, the Nepalese PM’s visit to India will provide an opportunity for Kathmandu and New Delhi to resume talks and move over the Kalapani dispute that was manufactured by the Oli regime at China’s behest.
If New Delhi and Kathmandu can engage with each other during Deuba’s India visit, and can draft a mutually agreeable territory for empowering Nepal’s growth story, then it will altogether eliminate China from the Himalayan nation. Deuba has thus dumped Chinese projects in their entirety.