Kerala may host next round of India-China border talks

‘‘I have told some houseboat owners in Kerala to arrange slightly bigger tables for the guests, as the maps used for demarcating the boundaries might otherwise spill over,’’ Sun quipped.

Although Indian Foreign Ministry officials have expressed readiness to hold the talks by the end of January, they are likely to be held only in February because of the annual Spring Festival in China.

‘‘Frankly speaking, settlement of the boundary dispute will take some time,’’ Sun said. He cited two major reasons for the possible delay. The first one is that the area under dispute is large. Also, the India-China border is at an altitude of over 7,000 metres, making demarcation difficult.

‘‘Border passes will be opened for trade by April. The Nathu La will be opened between May and June,’’ Sun said. While India has already built the road leading to the border pass, ‘‘China has to establish immigration and customs offices on our side’’, he said.

2006 has been declared the India-China Friendship Year. 50 partnership-building activities have been organised as part of the Friendship Year.