Indian Railways on Thursday has announced that it will terminate a contract worth 4.7 billion rupees ($61.8 million) given to a Chinese firm to conduct signaling work on a 259-mile stretch of railway amid a deadly border dispute between the two countries
NEW DELHI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th June, 2020) Indian Railways on Thursday has announced that it will terminate a contract worth 4.7 billion rupees ($61.8 million) given to a Chinese firm to conduct signaling work on a 259-mile stretch of railway amid a deadly border dispute between the two countries.
The Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL), which is run by Indian Railways, announced the termination of the contract citing the poor progress made by the Beijing National Railway Research and Design Institute of Signal and Communication Group.
"In view of poor progress, it is decided by Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL) to terminate the contract with Beijing National Railway Research and Design Institute of Signal and Communication Group Co Ltd," the DFCCIL said in a statement.
The Chinese firm had been awarded the contract in June 2016 to conduct signal and telecommunications work on 259 miles of line between Kanpur and Mughalsarai.
A standoff lasting several months on the border between India and China erupted in violent clashes on Monday evening in the Galwan Valley region. The Indian armed forces said that 20 of its soldiers died during the clashes, and the Chinese authorities also reported an unspecified number of casualties.
On Wednesday, Indian Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, and both sides agreed to find a fair solution to the ongoing tensions on the disputed border, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement.
