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Crisis on Nepal-India border as blockade continues

Three million Nepalese children under the age of five are at risk of death due to a shortage of fuel, food and medicine.

Stone-throwing protesters run away from the Nepali police during clashes in the center of Birgunj. [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
By Valerie Plesch
Published On 24 Dec 2015

Birgunj, Nepal – Since Nepal adopted a new constitution three months ago, the landlocked nation has been gripped by a humanitarian crisis.

A major reason for the disaster is an unofficial blockade imposed by the Indian government and supported by the ethnic Madhesis in the south of the country who have protested against the government and the new constitution.

The protesters have set up their own blockade at the main entry points where trucks carrying fuel, medicine and other vital supplies, have been barred from entering Nepal.

The heart of the Madhesi movement is in the Nepalese border town of Birgunj, which lies next to the Indian border town of Raxaul.

About 70 percent of imports from India flow through this border point and many travel to India through the border to buy fuel and other supplies to sell on the black market back in Nepal.

It is here where protesters and Madhesi supporters continue to stage protests against the government, often resulting in clashes with riot police. More than 50 people have been killed as a result of the protests. 

Last month, UNICEF released a statement that said that more than three million children under the age of five are at risk of death or disease during Nepal’s harsh winter months, because of a severe shortage of fuel, food, medicines and vaccines.

Nepal relies heavily on imports, especially food, medicines and fuel, from India, which is its largest trade partner.

Nepal is also still reeling from the April 25 earthquake, which killed thousands of people.

With the blockade in place, many fear that as the temperatures continue to dip, the situation will only worsen.

Protesters burn a drum containing fuel that was seized by a citizen suspected of smuggling it into Nepal from India [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Police chase after protesters, mostly teenagers, in the centre of Birgunj. Many businesses and shops in the city are still closed since protests started more than four months ago [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
A woman covers her face as protesters light fuel on fire in the center of Birgunj [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Young protesters run through a crowded market in the center of Birgunj to evade police chasing after them [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Black market fuel is displayed on the side of a road in Birgunj. Many Nepalese have to turn to the black market to purchase fuel that is smuggled from neighboring India. Unlike the capital, Kathmandu, where the black market thrives at night but remains hidden, it is a common sight to see fuel for sale in Birgunj during the day. Fuel prices are usually two to three times higher than before the fuel crisis [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
A tire burns on a busy street in downtown Birgunj, a sign that protests are ongoing [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Sahadat Ali, an inspector from the Armed Police Force, talks on his phone from the district police office in the center of Birgunj as protesters start to gather outside [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Protesters burn more fuel on suspicions that it was smuggled into Nepal from across the border in Raxaul, India [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Only four students out of 55 showed up to class on Sunday morning at Shree Nepal Rastriya Primare School, a government-run instutition in Birgunj, the epicentre of protests that have triggered the fuel crisis in Nepal. Students have already missed more than three months of school this year because the protesters did not allow schools to be open. Though classes unofficially resumed in late November, attendance has been low. "I’m teaching in a school here no kids are coming," said one teacher at the school [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Sunila Devi Paswan removes cow dung that she has dried on a wall in an enclosed field in Birgunj. Since she doesn't have cooking fuel to cook for her family, she now relies on cow dung supplied from her cows to burn for her cooking stove [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
A weathered sign marks the entry into India at the Indian border town of Raxaul. The Indian-Nepalese border is very fluid for citizens of both countries where one can travel without a visa to either country [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
A man crosses a makeshift barricade set up by protesters at the bridge separating India from Nepal. The protesters have enforced a trade blockade by setting up their own barriers in the stretch of land between the two countries. About 70 percent of imports from India travel through this border point, but almost all trade has stopped in the past four months [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Light shines on Indian territory at the border crossing of Raxaul, India and Birgunj, Nepal [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]
Baij Kant Dash, a sadu or holy man, sits with protesters next to a fire outside a tent set up on the border with India. Protesters and Madhesi supporters have been sleeping here since protests against the government began more than four months ago [Valerie Plesch/ Al Jazeera]