The government of India has decided to close its filed office in Biratnagar from August 1.

According to the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, the move followed the May 21 decision of the Indian government to shut down the outpost after repeated requests from the government of Nepal. The responsibilities of the field office would be shifted to the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu from the date.

Nepal had been requesting India since 2009 to wind down the field office set up to facilitate Nepali vehicles’ movement on Indian routes after the 2008 Koshi floods destroyed a section of the east-west highway on the Nepal side. Instead, New Delhi later scaled up the functions and facilities of the temporary office.

All services including issuing of motor vehicle permits, registration certificates for Indian nationals, attestation of documents and miscellaneous services (birth/death registrations) being rendered by the Biratnagar Camp Office will cease with effect from August 1, the embassy stated. “The purpose for which this camp office was opened has been fulfilled. Government of India had already decided to wind up the camp office and re-locate the personnel,” the May 21 statement of India’s Ministry of External Affairs read. All services hitherto being rendered by the camp office would be provided by the embassy itself, the embassy said. After the road link was severed, Nepal had asked India for permits to reroute its vehicles via highways across the border.

After repairing the highway, the Nepal government had urged the Indian side to draw down the field office. During the visit of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to India in April, his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi had assured that the field office would be shut down shortly.