World Notes NEPAL

India considers itself the guardian of Nepal, serving as supplier of or conduit for most of Nepal's commodities in exchange for its loyalty. Now the tiny nation with a harsh if spectacular terrain has offended its big neighbor, and India has not only refused to renew trade and transit agreements that expired last month but closed down eleven of 22 vital transit routes. Most of Nepal's necessities, including petroleum products and hospital oxygen, normally traverse these roads. Though New Delhi is permitting goods to cross the border, shortages are forcing the government to impose strict limits on the sale of gasoline and kerosene. Last week the rationing sparked the worst rioting in nearly a decade in the capital of Katmandu.

What evidently aroused India's ire was Nepal's 1988 purchase of guns and other weaponry from China, a longtime Indian rival. New Delhi regards the deal as a violation of the spirit of its 39-year-old friendship treaty with Katmandu. But Nepal seems determined to stand up to India's pressure, even if that means short-term suffering and completely revising its trade relations. Says a senior Nepalese official: "We will not give an inch."