Friday, August 11 2006 11:55 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Beijing: China has accused India of erecting unilateral and restrictive trade barriers at the strategic Nathu-La border trade market which was opened last month with much fanfare after a 44-year hiatus.

"India has unilaterally imposed restrictions on trade through Nathu La," vice chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Region, Hao Peng said in Lhasa, Tibet' s capital yesterday.

Hao told a group of visiting Indian journalists hosted by the Chinese government that the border trade through Nathu-La is running at a 'low level' and was 'not ideal.' Hao complained that a mere 15 Chinese items have been permitted to enter the Indian market from the Chinese side. At the same time, the Indian government has allowed the export of only 29 items from India to China.

"When China opened a trade mart at Renqinggang, some 16 km from the Nathu La Pass, India opened the Changgu mart in neighbouring Sikkim. However, while Indian business people can stay at China's Renqinggang mart, Chinese traders cannot spend the night at the Indian mart," Hao noted.

"Trade at the Renqinggang mart is currently less than 100,000 yuan (12,500 U.S. Dollars) per week, far less than we had expected," Hao was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.

China does not impose any restrictions on cross-border trade except for illegal items, and hostels have been built to accommodate Indian traders, he said.

"I hope the Indian government will adopt a more egalitarian approach to cross-border trade with China," he said.