Nepal’s new official map is “artificial” and unacceptable to India

Nepal’s new official map is “artificial” and unacceptable to India

Part of: GS-Prelims and Mains GS-II- International Politics

In News:

• Ministry of External Affairs has claimed that Nepal’s new official map is “artificial” and unacceptable to India.

Key takeaways:

• Nepal’s new political map claimed Kalapani, Limpiyadhura and Lipulekh of Uttarakhand as part of its sovereign territory. 
• Nepal claims that India has encroached upon this area, claiming tracts of land, and wants Delhi to evacuate population from the location
• Nepal has been on a collision course with India since Defence Minister has inaugurated a link road to Tibet on May 8th.
• The newly inaugurated Darchula-Lipulekh link road passes through the disputed region and will cut travelling time to Mansarovar pilgrimage destinations. Nepal asserts the area belongs to it. 

Important value additions:

• India had published a new map on November 2, 2019, representing the political boundaries of the country which showed the status of the newly created Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. 
• The same map also showed the region of Kalapani as part of the Indian territory.
• Nepal, however, maintains that not just the Kalapani region, but Limpiyadhura and Lipulekh are parts of its territory as demarcated in the 1816 Treaty of Sugauli