Traders in Himachal Pradesh have urged the government to resume trade with China through the Shipki-La border in Kinnaur district. They said reopening the route would boost sales of traditional goods, create jobs, and benefit traders on both sides.
The traders were attending the International Lavi Trade Fair in Rampur, around 130 km from Shimla. Many said the border trade route had been closed since 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and its revival was much needed.
Chander Mohan Negi, a trader from Nichar in Kinnaur, said “The sale of traditional items like woollens, Pasham (wool), and dry fruits saw a boost then, as Chinese goods would be sold in Rampur, and our goods would be sold to traders from Tibet.”
Dharam Pal Negi, another trader from Kalpa, said the resumption of trade would benefit everyone. “We want the trade route reopened so traditional items can be exchanged again, and goods come in greater quantity,” he said.
At the Lavi Fair’s inauguration, Himachal Pradesh Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla said he and the state government had already raised the matter with the Centre. He added that Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal was following up on it.
Traders from Kinnaur, who have attended the fair for the past 25–30 years, also voiced concern about declining sales due to online shopping. They said the closure of the trade route had further reduced the fair’s vibrancy and visitor numbers.
Earlier, a variety of items such as wool, raw silk, yak hair, China clay, borax, butter, salt, garments, shoes, quilts, blankets, carpets, herbal medicines, and even animals like horses, goats, and sheep were imported from China. These unique goods used to attract large crowds to the fair.
The nearly 300-year-old Lavi Fair was originally established through a treaty between the princely state of Bushahr and Tibet during the reign of Raja Kehar Singh. The agreement was sealed with an exchange of Tibetan horses and Bushahr swords and has remained a symbol of trade and friendship ever since.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has previously said Shipki-La, once part of the historic Silk Route and recognised as a formal border trade point under the 1994 Indo-China bilateral agreement, played a crucial role in trans-Himalayan economic and cultural exchange.
In June this year, the chief minister inaugurated tourism activities at Shipki-La, located at an altitude of 3,930 metres on the Indo-Tibet border.
In August, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar informed the Himachal government that discussions had begun with China to resume border trade through all three approved routes — Shipki-La (Himachal Pradesh), Lipulekh (Uttarakhand), and Nathu La (Sikkim).
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