Nathu La route to Kailash Mansarovar to be operational from June

Indian pilgrims visiting Kailash Mansarovar in the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China will be able to use the Nathu La pass in Sikkim starting June this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Friday.

"The Nathu La route for Indian pilgrims to visit Kailash Mansarovar will become operational in June. I want to thank China for that," Prime Minister Modi said, while making a statement to the press after India and China signed a record 24 bilateral agreements.

The Prime Minister also said that the decision to open consulates in Chengdu, the provincial capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China, and Chennai reflects the growing mutual confidence and shared commitment to expand relations.

India and China had earlier signed a bilateral agreement on the Nathu La route on September 18, 2014. This agreement provides for conducting the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra through Nathu La, in addition to the existing Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand.

The new route will enable the pilgrims drive all along, travelling first from Gangtok in Sikkim to Shigatse in Tibet, from where they can take vans and buses on the existing road to Mansarovar and Kailash directly.