The agreement between India and China to open the ancient trade route between Sikkim and Tibet has sounded alarm bells for Nepali businessmen who trade with Tibet. The 4,500 m pass connects the two countries by a high-altitude motorable road. While Indian and Chinese leaders toasted each other in Beijing during Atal Behari Vajpayee's visit, Nepal's trans-Himalayan traders are worried that their business will dry up.

They believe Nepal's export of rice and wheat to Tibet will decline drastically. "Tibet will increase its imports from India while our export will go down," forsees Tribuban Dhar Tuladhar, Vice President of Nepal Trans-Himalayan Trading Association. At the Federation of Nepali Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), businessmen foresee a gloomy picture and perhaps a repeat of the fate Kerung when the Kodari route was opened in the 1960s. Nepal imported goods worth around Rs 53 billion from Tibet during fiscal year 2000-2001.