The Araniko Highway, a key route linking Nepal to China through the Tatopani border, has been closed for 11 days following frequent landslides at Kodari. Traders say the authorities have failed to take adequate measures to restore traffic, leaving hundreds of containers stranded and causing heavy losses.

With the highway blocked, importers have been forced to hire porters to carry perishable goods such as apples, mangoes, garlic, grapes, and spices across the landslide site. Other goods, including readymade clothes, shoes, bags, rolls of fabric, and machinery, have been stuck for days in the customs warehouse at Miteri Bridge, at Khasa, and Nyalam in Tibet.

According to traders, transporting a container of apples manually to a safe location costs up to Rs150,000. They say perishable items risk spoiling due to torn cartons, heat damage, and lack of security during transport. Around 60 containers carrying fruit are stranded on the road.

Rajesh Bhandari, executive member of the Nepal Trans Himalaya Border Commerce Association, said the situation is worse than last year, when rainfall in late September caused significant damage. He said that with Rasuwagadhi closed since the June floods, Tatopani has become the only operational land route to China. With commercial consignments from various Chinese cities stranded en route, traders now face losses of tens of millions of rupees.

Buddharaj Basnet, president of the Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Sindhupalchok chapter, who has been on-site for over a week facilitating road clearance efforts, said the prolonged closure has highlighted government indifference towards a customs point that generates billions in revenue each year. Last year, Tatopani Customs collected nearly Rs19 billion in revenue, but officials now estimate collections could fall short by 40-42 percent of the target this fiscal year.

Landslide clearance at Kodari has been difficult because the upper section remains unstable, and the Bhotekoshi river erodes the lower section. The road department’s earthmovers and local traders have occasionally temporarily cleared the route, allowing containers to move once a day, but fresh landslides keep cutting off access.

The blocked section is about 6.5km from the dry port at Larcha, and the entire Bahrabise–Tatopani stretch risks landslides.

Lawmaker Madhav Sapkota told Parliament on Tuesday that minor repairs will not be enough to reopen the highway and that 700 freight containers remain stranded.

Sapkota said the government had set a revenue target of Rs 2.4 billion for the current fiscal year from Tatopani Customs, but the government’s concern has been low since the border has been closed. “It has been 11 days since the Araniko Highway has remained closed. Simple repairs have not been enough. Around 700 freight containers are stranded on the road.”

Some traders have rerouted shipments via Kolkata port and southern border crossings, but these take 40–45 days, making it difficult to get goods to market before the Dashain festival. Others have returned containers from Khasa to Nyalam for storage in cold storage to prevent spoilage.

Ram Hari Karki, president of the Nepal Trans Himalaya Border Commerce Association, said he has sent written requests to senior ministers to prioritise repairs on the route. He warned that the northern trade link has become increasingly unsafe during the monsoon season. Road department sources say a team of experts will be deployed to the landslide site to determine necessary measures, as normal repairs will not work.

Despite being the closest and most convenient trade route to China, Tatopani has lost trader confidence due to frequent closures. With Rasuwagadhi shut, Mansarovar pilgrimage traffic has also been affected, although more returnees than outbound travellers are now crossing the border.