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India, Nepal sign treaty to curb Maoist rebels

NEW DELHI: India and Nepal have signed an extradition treaty to check growing links between Maoist rebels in both countries, a home ministry official said Thursday.

The agreement was signed after talks between India’s home secretary Dhirendra Singh and his Nepalese counterpart Chandi Prasad Shreshtha, the official said.

The treaty and an accord for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters would help contain “terrorism and illegal activities including the smuggling of arms and ammunition” across the 1,800 kilometre (1,100 mile) open border between the neighbours, he said.

Earlier this week, India put its soldiers on “full alert” along the border with Nepal after intelligence reports that Maoist guerrillas were seeking to set up bases in its revolt-hit northeast. The alert was sounded after the rebels kidnapped and later released 14 Nepalese Gurkha soldiers serving with the Indian army.

The Nepalese Maoists have been waging an increasingly deadly insurgency since 1996 to topple the monarchy. India and Nepal have been closely cooperating to contain the Maoists. New Delhi is battling its own leftist rebels in many southern and eastern states.

India, worried over the mounting instability in the Himalayan kingdom where more than 11,000 people have died in the conflict, has been training and equipping Nepal’s over-stretched army. afp

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