Karnali Province Falls Short of Road Blacktopping, Bridge Construction Targets

Surkhet. The Karnali Province government has blacktopped 53 kilometers of road in the first nine months of the current fiscal year. The Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Urban Development had set a target of blacktopping 161 kilometers of road across the province in the current fiscal year. The progress achieved by the end of the third quarterly review is approximately one-third of the target. Not only road blacktopping, but this ministry has also failed to achieve its targets in other statistics. How many kilometers of road blacktopped in which district? This year, the provincial government had set a target of blacktopping 59.7 kilometers of road in Surkhet alone, but only 20.28 kilometers of work has been completed so far. In Dailekh, with a target of 10 kilometers of blacktopping, 6 kilometers have been completed; in Salyan, with a target of 15 kilometers, 6.50 kilometers; in Rukum West, with a target of 20 kilometers, 1.20 kilometers; and in Jajarkot, only 1.20 kilometers of road have been blacktopped out of a target of 3 kilometers, according to the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Urban Development. Similarly, in Dolpa, with a target of 2 kilometers, 0.13 kilometers; in Jumla, with a target of 2.50 kilometers, 0.85 kilometers; and in Mugu, 0.60 kilometers of road have been blacktopped out of a target of 4 kilometers. In Humla and Kalikot, road blacktopping work has not even started yet. Although the target for Kalikot was 5 kilometers and for Humla 0.80 kilometers of road blacktopping this year, the work of blacktopping roads has not started in nine months, said Ramesh Subedi, spokesperson for the ministry. Delays in Gravel to Bridge Construction Work Not only road blacktopping, but the ministry has also not been able to do expected work in gravel/clause-smithing, opening new tracks, upgrading, drain construction, and bridge construction.

According to ministry officials, while road blacktopping is a priority in hilly districts like Surkhet and Dailekh, new road networks need to be expanded in the Himalayan districts. Road networks have not yet connected all parts of the Himalayan districts.

This year, the ministry's target was to build 139 kilometers of gravel roads, open 184 kilometers of new tracks, and upgrade 96 kilometers of roads and construct drains. In nine months, 61 kilometers of gravel roads have been built, and 113 kilometers of new roads have been excavated. In the category of drain construction and upgrading, progress has been much higher than the target (100 kilometers). According to ministry officials, while road blacktopping is a priority in hilly districts like Surkhet and Dailekh, new road networks need to be expanded in the Himalayan districts. Road networks have not yet connected all parts of the Himalayan districts. The provincial government had set a target to expand 5 kilometers of gravel roads and 40 kilometers of new road networks in Humla this year. In nine months, no gravel work has been done, and only 16 kilometers of new roads have been excavated. In Dolpa, out of a plan to expand 5 kilometers of gravel roads and 35 kilometers of new road networks, only 0.80 kilometers of gravel and 14 kilometers of new roads have been excavated so far. In other districts, the work of upgrading and blacktopping roads that were already built is more than building new roads. However, officials say that work in those districts is also not happening as expected. There are infrastructure development offices in every district under the ministry. Chief Minister Yamlal Kandel had previously signed performance agreements with the heads of those offices, the ministry's secretary, and the minister in August. However, Chief Minister Kandel is dissatisfied as the work has not been done according to the commitments made in the agreement. Karnali Not Yet Free of Tuis, Road Bridge Situation Unchanged The provincial government had announced Karnali as a tuins-free region within this year. A ministry employee says that this work is impossible within this fiscal year.

The provincial government plans to build suspension bridges in places with tuins. Accordingly, the target is to build 63 suspension bridges this year, but only 26 have been built so far.