(TibetanReview.net, May31’26) – In another reopening of its kind, the historical Shipki La border trade route between India and Tibet from Kinnaur in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh is to reopen on Jun 1, reported the hindustantimes.com May 31, citing the state’s Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi. The reaffirmation of Shipki La’s reopening came days after the announcement that the Lipulekh route in Uttarakhand state’s Pithoragarh district will reopen in June after being closed, most recently, since 2020, in the aftermath of Covid-19 pandemic and then the Galwan Valley conflict.
Speaking to mediapersons on Jun 30, Negi has termed the reopening of the Shipki La trade route as a significant step in reviving traditional Indo-Tibetan trade links.
Negi has said, “Trade between the people of Kinnaur and Tibet has existed since ancient times. However, geopolitical developments and China’s control over Tibet significantly altered traditional trading patterns”.
A trade centre has been established at Shipki village near the Shipki La border pass, through which Indian traders undertake limited trade with China. At present, around 25 to 26 notified items are permitted for trade, Negi has said.
He has added that the full potential of the trade route cannot be realised because livestock imports have been stopped due to the absence of quarantine facilities. “It is a limited trade activity involving a limited number of people. Therefore, its economic benefits and employment generation potential will also remain limited.”
Like in the case of Lipulekh in Uttarakhand and also Nathu La in Sikkim, the Shipki La trade route also closed the last time in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent military tensions between India and China.
This Indo-Tibetan trade route has a long history. In 1697, a formal treaty was signed between Tibet’s Gaden Phodrang government and Raja Kehari Singh of Bushahar, which guaranteed safe passage, cementing a long-term trade partnership, and trading was done on a barter (exchange) basis through the old Hindustan-Tibet road, noted a PTI news agency report Mar 22.
Tibetan traders sold quality wool, sheep, salt, yak tails, and raw silk, while Indian traders exported items like copperware, rice, textiles, tea and agricultural tools. Trade deals were based on ‘gamgya’ (a traditional folk oath of mutual trust) rather than written contracts, the report noted.
The trade was largely halted in 1962 due to the Sino-Indian War, but limited, regulated trade resumed in 1994 after several decades, which was again discontinued during Covid in 2020.
Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh has also been urging New Delhi to develop the Shipki La pass road to facilitate the Kailash-Mansarovar pilgrimage, noting that building just 3 to 4 Km of connectivity would facilitate a smoother and shorter journey to these sacred sites in Purang County of Tibet’s Ngari prefecture.
Mount Kailash is sacred to Hindus, Tibetan Buddhists, Jains, and followers of Tibet’s pre Buddhist religion Bon and there is annual rush of pilgrims especially from India.