KATHMANDU: The Kaligandaki Corridor provides a direct route between India and China.
This project, which is a source of national pride, has effectively connected the renowned Muktinath Temple in Mustang with Lumbini, the birthplace of Gautam Buddha.
Consequently, Indian tourists have started visiting Muktinath via this corridor, making it the most efficient route for them.
According to Harihar Sharma, Deputy Chief of Jaimini Municipality, the corridor not only improves access for Indian visitors to Muktinath but also links tourists from the Kaligandaki coastal area to Lumbini.
The corridor not only facilitates access for Indian tourists to Muktinath but also connects visitors from the Kaligandaki coastal region to Lumbini, according to Harihar Sharma, Deputy Chief of Jaimini Municipality.
He noted that the face of Baglung has transformed due to the southern corridor, which is currently undergoing blacktopping.
In Baglung alone, there is a 44-kilometer road within the corridor. This road runs through Balewa, Kushmisera, and Jaidi in southern Baglung and connects to Gulmi via Chhisti Chhischilo.
"The corridor has opened the door to the development of South Baglung. The road has been paved within five years of its opening. Indian tourists can access Muktinath, while Chinese tourists can reach Lumbini through this corridor, thereby establishing trilateral trade relations," Sharma explained.
Since the corridor's expansion, large cargo trucks and buses transporting tourists have been arriving at Muktinath from Gaindakot via Jaiminidham, Baglung Kalika, and Panchakot.
Once the road paving is complete, significant traffic is anticipated in this area, making the corridor the shortest route for travelers entering Baglung, Myagdi, and Mustang from India.
According to local resident Sanam Rana, the convergence of the Kaligandaki Corridor and the Mid-Hill Highway in Baglung will bolster the development of the tourism sector.
In the five years since the corridor's opening, various segments have been upgraded and paved rapidly.
The 495-kilometer corridor extending from Gaidakot to the Chinese border at Korala bprder crossing was inaugurated in 2076 BS with support from the Nepali Army, allowing Chinese tourists to visit Lumbini through the corridor.
The plan for the corridor, initiated 24 years ago, is now progressing towards realization.
It is being improved and blacktopped in two segments: the Gaidakot-Ramdi-Maldhunga section, which is 224 kilometers long, and the Maldhunga-Beni-Jomsom section, which spans 255 kilometers.
Of the 240 kilometers in the Gaidakot-Maldhunga segment, 162 kilometers, or 67 percent, have been blacktopped, according to Kalpana Adhikari, Chief of the Kaligandaki Corridor Gaindakot-Maldhunga Project Office.
The corridor has simplified travel from Lumbini to Mansarovar via Muktinath, and campaigner Tikaram Dhakal anticipates that it will become even more accessible after the road paving is finished.
With the commencement of vehicle movement on the corridor, which directly links China and India, Indian pilgrims have started arriving at the renowned religious site of Muktinath in Mustang via the Ruru region.
Dhakal emphasized the need to create a conducive environment for bringing Buddhist pilgrims from China to Lumbini, the sacred birthplace of Lord Gautam Buddha.
He noted that the corridor was envisioned from Gulmi twenty-four years ago.
The corridor encompasses significant pilgrimage sites, including Triveni Dham, Devghat Dham, Keladi Dham, Ramdighat, Ranighat, Rudrabeni, Setiveni, Purti Ghat, Jyamrighat, Palpa Bhairabhsthan, Baglung Kalika, Galeshwor Dham, Kagbeni, Muktinath, and Damodar Kunda.
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