Greater Nepal: A Quest

While the rest of us are sipping lattes, Manoj Pandit, Subash Adhikari and friends are probably doing the same but they're on a quest. A quest for greater Nepal. Literally!!

His documentary “In Quest of Boundary” is travelling on the web fast. To understand this quest, let’s shed some light on Sugauli Treaty first. (skip this paragraph if you know The Sugauli Treaty). The Sugauli Treaty (also spelled Segowlee and Segqulee) was signed on December 2, 1815 and ratified by March 4, 1816, between theBritish East India Company and Nepal, which was a kingdom during that era. This ended the second British invasion of the Himalayan kingdom during the Anglo-Nepalese War (1814-1816). The signatory for Nepal was Raj Guru Gajaraj Mishra aided by Chandra Sekher Upadhyaya and the signatory for the Company was Lieutenant-Colonel Paris Bradshaw. The treaty called for territorial concessions in which parts of Nepal will be given to British India, the establishment of a British representative in Kathmandu, and allowed Britain to recruit Gurkhas for military service. Nepal also lost the right to deploy any American or European employee in its service (earlier several French commanders had been deployed to train the Nepali army).

Under the treaty, about one-third of Nepalese territory was lost, including Sikkim (whose Chogyals supported Britain in the Anglo-Nepalese War); territory to west of the Kali River like Kumaon (present Indian state of Uttarakhand), Garhwal (present Indian state of Uttarakhand); some territories to the west of the Sutlej River like Kangra (present day Himachal Pradesh); and much of the Terai Region. Some of the Terai Region was restored to Nepal in 1816 under a revision of the treaty and more territory was returned in 1865 to thank Nepal for helping to suppress the Indian.

Even though, Nepal was entitled to the territory, India has been encroaching and as with the other issues, Nepal is watching in dismay.

Is it worth the hassle to get those lands back? You might ask. That is a very good question. Nepal has so many problems already as of now; illiteracy, political instability, bad infrastructure, etc. But considering the fact that our ancestors had bled for them and to respect the fact that Nepal has always been a sovereign country and to prove that we won’t be pushed around, I think it is worth it! It probably isn’t worth fighting for the whole Sikkim and Darjeeling back (though it would have been nice!). But I think we should stand up and protect at least what we have.

What do you think?