KATHMANDU: Nepal-India border in Kanchanpur and Kailali districts will remain close for 72 hours during the election to the House of Representatives (HoR) and the Provincial Assembly slated for  November 20.

A meeting of the officials of Nepal and India held at Rudrapur of Udhyam Singh district, Uttarakhand, India, on Friday decided to close the border.

Kailali Chief District Officer Kiran Thapa informed that India had agreed to cooperate by closing the border during the election to create a peaceful environment in Nepal.

He added that the agreement was made to close the international border 24 hours before the Election Day. The border will open after the conclusion of the election.

Likewise, the Nepali side had urged the Indian side not to obstruct the construction of Postal Highway in Kailali and Kanchanpur. The Indian side had promised to facilitate the construction in the No Man’s Land, informed Thapa.

In the meeting, both sides also agreed to work for controlling theft, drug trafficking and other criminal activities along the border.

The Nepali team under the leadership of Chief District Officer of Kanchanpur Gopal Aryal attended the meeting.

Chief District Officer of Kailali, Assistant Chief District Officers, district heads of all security agencies, heads of Forest Division Office, Customs and Surveyors Offices were present in the meeting.

The Indian side was led by DM Yugal Kishore Pant of Udhyam Singh Nagar.