HP CM seeks start of Kailash Mansarovar Yatra from Shipki-La Pass
HP CM seeks start of Kailash Mansarovar Yatra from Shipki-La Pass
Shimla, Aug 24
Apart from opening of the Shipki la pass for border trade, Himachal Pradesh government has received a positive response regarding the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra (KMY) through Shipki-La from the Union government. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, in his communication to the Centre, had highlighted that the Shipki-La route, connecting via Gartok towards Darchen and Mansarovar is comparatively shorter on the Tibetan side. Himachal Pradesh already has road connectivity up to Shipki-La via Rampur Bushahr and Pooh, making it feasible to develop the necessary base camps and supporting infrastructure for the Yatra.
The Union External Affairs Minister, in a letter to the Chief Minister, conveyed that after a five-year gap, the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra has resumed through Lipulekh Pass (Uttarakhand) and Nathu La Pass (Sikkim), and now Shipki-La would be added as an additional route. These initiatives would not only revive traditional border trade but also open new avenues for tourism, cultural exchange, and economic development in Himachal Pradesh.
Both India and China have agreed to re-opening of border trade through the three designated trading points, namely Lipulekh Pass, Shipki-La Pass and Nathu-La Pass. The both sides have also agreed to continue and further expand the scale of the Indian pilgrimage to Mount Kailash, Gang Renpoche and Lake Manasarovar from 2026.
The Himachal government had been making efforts to resume trade with China through Shipki-La (Kinnaur). The Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi, who recently was on visit to India held meeting with Union External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar to discuss various bilateral issues. Both the Ministers agreed in principle during this meeting to the proposal of resuming trade between the two nations.
The state government would now take this matter with the union commerce ministry for completing the codal formalities.
Union External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar has informed the state government that the Government of India initiated discussions with China for resumption of border trade through all three designated points- Shipki-La (Himachal Pradesh), Lipulekh (Uttarakhand) and Nathu La (Sikkim), which had been suspended since 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Chief Minister had emphasized that Shipki-La, once an offshoot of the legendary Silk Route and formalized as a border trade point under the Indo-China bilateral agreement of 1994, played a vital role in trans-Himalayan economic and cultural exchanges.
The Chief Minister has expressed gratitude to the union government for prioritizing these key concerns of the State in bilateral dialogues with China.
