Government prioritizes infrastructural development; many new projects launched

The government has prioritized infrastructural development with many new projects of road construction, degradation, and other structures launched and ongoing. The East-West Highway and Muglin-Pokhara Highway are being upgraded to four lanes, and the construction of a flyover at Gwarko in Kathmandu, and a tunnelway in Siddhababa has started.

Similarly, the construction of a signature bridge at Narayangadh bazaar under the Mahendra Highway, and the upgrading of the Muglin-Pokhara Road, and Nagdhunga-Naubise-Muglin Road have begun, according to Sushil Babu Dhakal, Director General of the Department of Roads.

Expansion of the Suryabinayak-Dhulikhel road has been also initiated, said Bhimarjun Adhikari, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport.

"The construction of the Kakadvitta-Laukahi road and the Kamala-Dhalkebar road will begin soon," he said.

The government has prioritized the construction, degradation, and repair of the country's highways, he said.

It has a policy of constructing flyovers at crossings in a bid to manage traffic, said the Department.

The government has a policy of constructing flyovers, installing traffic lights, and expanding and upgrading roads in the Kathmandu Valley will take place, said Dhakal.

The Siddhababa tunnel way aims to facilitate traffic and the mobility of people, said Adhikari.

Though the target time for the projects of national pride is drawing nearer, they are highly likely to miss the deadline. These projects were expected to be completed earlier, but the COVID-19 pandemic and other various obstructions delayed the implementation of the project

According to Spokesperson Adhikari, the Mid Hill Highway, and the Postal Highway will not meet the deadline as planned and it is necessary to reschedule the target time of the projects.

In the case of the Mid Hill highway, 42 kilometers of its section has been blacktopped followed by the construction of four bridges while under the Postal Highway, 36 kilometers of highway has been blacktopped along with the construction of seven bridges.

Among the North-South Corridor, the Kaligandaki corridor reports much progress with the blacktopping of roads along 10 kilometers of the area with the completion of four bridges. It also reports the construction of a 30-km gravel road.

The Koshi Corridor witnesses the construction of a 15-kilometer gavel road along with the construction of one bridge.

A track of 3.5 kilometers has been opened along the Karnali Corridor and the track of 38 kilometers has been widened.

The Madan Bhandari Highway Construction Project, reports the construction of a road measuring 265 kilometers. In the current fiscal year, additional six kilometers of the road were blacktopped. It is said 99, out of 185 bridges along the highway, have been completed.

Under Nagdhunga Tunnel Construction Project three underpasses, four culverts, one overpass, and three bridges have been completed while under the Narayangadh-Butwal road project, 28 small bridges have been completed followed by the construction of three major bridges.

Likewise, seven small bridges have been constructed along the Muglin-Pokhara Road and so far the progress is around 30 percent.

He said there are no problems with programs included in the 'Red Book', however, there is the problem of budget in other projects. Mainly there is no problem with the budget for national pride projects.

The progress of the Department should be above 60-65 percent so far, but the progress is below it, he shared. Before COVID, the progress of the Ministry used to be around 80 percent while the progress of the projects invested by the government of Nepal used to be more than 90 percent, and that of projects run under foreign investment around 80 percent.

According to him, progress has become low since the start of the coronavirus. The progress was 57 percent in the last fiscal year 2021/22 and 67 percent in the fiscal year 2020/21. The Ministry has forwarded activities to formulate necessary laws for the establishment of the Transport Authority.

Spokesperson Adhikari shared that the draft of the regulations of the Transport Authority has already been prepared and was sent to the Finance Ministry for consent. It would be sent to the Law Ministry after consent from Finance Ministry before its presentation in the cabinet after receiving consent from the Law Ministry, he added.

According to the Ministry, the construction of a two-kilometer railway track bed and two railway bridges along the east-west electric railway was completed last year.

A 54-km track bed was prepared and construction of seven railway bridges has been completed so far, according to the Department of Railways. Director General of the Department, Rohit Kumar Bisural, said construction is underway only at the Bardibas-Nijgadh section.

Out of the railways constructed with the support of the Indian government, a railway from Bathanaha of India to the Customs Office of Biratnagar and Jaynagar-Bijulpura has been completed, he added.

"Railway service is in operation from Jaynagar to Kurtha", he mentioned, adding the report of the study of the Raxaul-Kathmandu railway is yet to be received. A feasibility study of the Kathmandu-Kerung railway is underway.

(Sanchita Ghimire)

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