Monday, September 5 2005 15:16 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Gangtok: With the formal opening of border trade between India and China through Nathu-la in East Sikkim less than a month away, the Himalayan pass and its vicinity have burst into a flurry of activities.

The serenity and solitude of Nathu-la at 14,400 ft have been replaced by the sound of road building equipments like bulldozers and rollers pressed into service by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) to upgrade the road from Gangtok to the border outpost to ensure smooth trading between the two neighbours beginning after a gap of over 40 years.

A combined 600-strong team of the BRO, the army and the PWD is working day and night, braving intermittent rains and the perennially grey weather to spruce up the 57 km stretch between Gangtok and Nathu-la and build a trade mart at Sherathang, about 5 km from the border, to meet the October 2, 2005 deadline set for trade to start.

Most of the work has been completed, including black topping of the road, despite the odds faced during monsoon. An alternative five km diversion road between Sherathang and Nathu-la has also been built with its surfacing going on at present, a BRO official told PTI claiming everything would be perfectly in place by September 20, 2005.

So far, a host of State Government, BRO and army officials have visited Nathu-la to assess the progress of work in view of the scheduled opening of the trade route and have come back satisfied.

Sherathang, where the trade mart is to come up, is abuzz with hectic activity. Six sheds are being repaired and 13 new ones constructed for the purpose of trading and accommodating banks, customs and telecom offices.

There are also plans to set up a primary health centre and a post office there besides a 250 kva power sub-station and an 11 kva transmission line, Sikkim's Commerce and Industries Secretary, Karma Gyatso, who has just returned from Nathula, said.

The BRO has to widen the road right from Sevoke to Nathu-la, black-top the 57-km stretch between Gangtok and the pass, fence 12-km road from Kyangosla near Changu lake up to the border on either side.

Besides, it will build a new approach road between Sherathang and the border post in two phases to facilitate smooth movement of trucks carrying loads of ten to 40 tonnes along the route, BRO sources said.

However, as of now, it is concentrating on developing the infrastructure, including the trade mart, and the roads near Nathu-la, the long-term upgradation of the road right from Sevoke to the pass would be taken up in the second phase only.