China on Monday supplied one-third of the 1,000 metric tonnes of petroleum it promised to provide to fuel-starved Nepal in grants. Nepal Oil Corporation said only four tankers could transport the fuel on Monday as the road to Kerung Pass along Nepal-Tibet border was obstructed following snowfall. "The remaining fuel will be sent to Nepal within a week's time," it said. A group of NOC, Petro-China company and officials of Chinese embassy in Kathmandu had reached the Nepal side of the border to welcome the entry of the much-awaited fuel in Nepal. [related-post] A Memorandum of Understanding signed between the NOC and Petro-China last week pledges to supply 1,000 metric tonnes of petroleum to Nepal in grants, and keeps the option for enlarged supply of petroleum, diesel and cooking gas to the extent possible to Nepal which has been reeling under scarcity following drastic cut in supply from India in the past one month. India was not happy with the promulgation of the Constitution in Nepal ‘without addressing’ the demands of Madhes-centric leaders. The picketing along Raxaul-Birgunj check-post - the point that accounts for 70 per cent of the total supply of fuel and gas to Nepal - by the supporters of those parties has been cited as the cause for disruption of supply by the Indian Oil Corporation.
