Nepal opens bridge built with India's help near China border

Nepal today inaugurated a bridge built with India's financial assistance of USD 430,626 on the Kaligandaki river near China border.
The bridge at Jomsom area in Mustang district not only provides direct motorable connectivity to people of Mustang but also benefits thousands of tourists and pilgrims visiting the famous Muktinath temple and upper Mustang for trekking, the Indian Embassy here said in a statement.
The newly-constructed Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) bridge was inaugurated by Ambassador of India to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri.
India had extended a total of 44.5 million Nepali rupees (USD 430,626 or 2.7 crore Indian rupees) as financial assistance for its construction as part of IndiaNepal Economic Cooperation (INEC) programme, the statement said.

Prior to the construction of the RCC bridge, the old suspension bridge on the river Kaligandaki could not be used by motorists, it said.
People had to alight from their vehicles and took another vehicle from across the river to reach their destination, the statement added.
The INEC has an outlay of over 76 billion Nepali rupees with more than 554 large and small development projects completed or currently being implemented across the country in cooperation with the Nepal government.
The projects focus on the education, health and infrastructure sectors.