Road projects in Lumbini enter slow lane

BHAIRAHAWA: A 3.5-kilometer road section that links Golpark of Butwal to the highway intersection has been under construction for the past six years.

The road section is a component of the Butwal-Belhiya Trade Road. The road construction began in 2016 with a deadline of 30 months, but the project remains incomplete even after 74 months and several time extensions. The latest extension expires in mid-July, but the builder company – The Kanchanjunga-Biruwa JV – has not achieved even 50% physical progress.

“The builder has not completed the work despite receiving several time extensions. We will impose a fine on the company if the project is not completed by mid-July,” said Maheshwar Lamsal, the information officer of the Division Road Office, Butwal.

According to Lamsal, the builder has achieved 48% progress in the work. “Following protests by the locals, the builder has blacktopped the center, leaving both sides of the road incomplete,” he added.

The project suffered for two years due to delays in clearing the structures on the road’s right of way. It was awarded to the builder for Rs 472.7 million. However, the cost has now escalated to Rs 540 million.

This is not the only infrastructure project that has encountered delays in Lumbini Province. The works on the Saljhandi-Sandhikhark-Dhorpatan Road (197 km) are progressing at a snail’s pace. The project, which started 14 years ago, is facing a budget crunch and negligence from the contractor. The road project aims to connect two important tourism destinations of Lumbini Province – Lumbini and Dhorpatan.

The project, estimated to cost Rs 8 billion according to the detailed project report (DPR), is allocated around Rs 40 million every year. So far, Rs 2.65 billion has been spent on the project. The physical progress of the project is only around 40%. Lately, the project has been labeled as a north-south corridor project.

The upgrading works of the Butwal-Narayanghat section of the East-West Highway are also moving at a slow pace. Because of the construction works, it currently takes up to eight hours to travel on this 113-km section. The upgrading works were awarded to the Chinese company China State Construction and Engineering Association five years ago by dividing the section into two stretches – Gaidakot-Daunne (65 km) and Daunne-Butwal (48 km).

Thousands of passengers who travel on this road section every day are at the receiving end of the contractor’s negligence.

Provincial roads started without any studies

The Lumbini Province Government seems to have given special priority to road infrastructure since its inception. However, major road projects remain incomplete even though the provincial government has already completed its one term.

The Rampur-Jinabang road, which was initiated as a ‘pride project’ launched by the province’s first Chief Minister Shankar Pokhrel, still remains incomplete. Small allocations for multi-year projects are not delivering the expected results. Although the government has been allocating funds to the project every year, its progress is slow.

The provincial government has allocated Rs 205 million to the project in the next fiscal year.

The Butwal-Charange-Jhumsa road started as an alternative to the risky Siddhababa area of the Siddhartha Highway, has also encountered delays. The project on the Chure and Mahabharat hills, which began without conducting environmental and geological assessments, is suffering from multiple landslides and floods. The provincial government had allocated Rs 100 million to the project five years ago. The project has been allocated Rs 77.5 million in the coming fiscal year.

The provincial government is implementing 25 province pride projects, 58 constituency-level road projects, and 465 provincial road projects. Similarly, it is implementing 20 local unit access road projects, 21 tourism destination access road projects, 21 border area road projects, nine agricultural road projects, two industrial site access roads, and five other access roads. All these projects have been earmarked budgets for 2023/24.

The provincial government has allocated Rs 501.5 million for local unit access road projects, Rs 134 million for tourism destination access road projects, and Rs 297 million for border area access road projects.