Progress Reaches 45% on Kathmandu-Terai Expressway Project Managed by Nepali Army

Kathmandu. The progress on the Kathmandu-Terai Expressway (Fast Track) construction has reached 45 percent. The overall physical progress of the project, which is being constructed under the management of the Nepali Army, is currently at 45.16 percent, and the financial progress is at 45.33 percent.

Among the seven tunnels to be built at Mahadev Danda, Dhedre, Len Danda, Chandrambhir, Devichaur, Sisoutar, and Mauribhir under the project, five are under construction. The Nepali Army Road Construction Project Directorate has stated that four tunnels (break-throughs) at Dhedre and Len Danda (both sides) in Makwanpur have been completed so far.

According to Nepali Army Technical Chief Lieutenant Colonel Milan Karki, work is underway to achieve break-throughs for two more pairs of tunnels by the end of the current fiscal year. The total length of all these tunnels is 10.97 km.

The total length of the expressway, which starts from Khokna in Lalitpur and connects to the East-West Highway at Nijgadh in Bara, passing through Kathmandu and Makwanpur, will be 70.97 km. It will have a width of 25 meters in the hilly region and 27 meters in the Terai region. Under the project, 9 km of road will be constructed in Lalitpur, 4.6 km in Kathmandu, 49.7 km in Makwanpur, and 7.6 km in Bara.

Nepali Army Spokesperson Rajaram Basnet informed that 89 bridges, both small and large, will be constructed under the expressway. According to him, the construction of bridges at 13 locations, including special structures up to 82 meters high, has been completed so far. It is reported that the contract management and implementation for bridges at 85 locations under the project are ongoing.

The project directorate has stated that there are land acquisition issues for the remaining four bridge locations. The construction of bridges at 15 locations is expected to be completed by the end of the current fiscal year. Under the project, five kilometers of the 11 km road's sub-base and service lane have been paved.

This strategically important, first expressway of the country, built to 'Asian Highway Standard,' connects the capital to the Terai region via a shorter route. The army has stated that the initial estimated cost for the Fast Track construction is NPR 213 billion. Work is proceeding with the target of completing the project by the end of Chaitra 2083 BS.

Once the project is completed, it will be possible to reach central Terai from Kathmandu in about one hour. Photos: Prakash Chandra Timilsina, Nepal Photo Library