Road Construction Faces Delays

Hetauda. The construction of the shortest route connecting Hetauda, the capital of Bagmati Province, and Kathmandu, the federal capital, the 'Phakhel-Matatirtha-Satungal' road, appears to be slow. Despite 7 years having passed since the commencement of construction of the 14-kilometer long 'Phakhel-Matatirtha-Satungal' road, which holds strategic importance as an alternative route, it has not been completed. The road, included in the province government's 'Pride Project' and the Provincial Road Master Plan, has been delayed in its construction. This road, being constructed with the investment of the Bagmati Provincial Government, is the shortest route connecting Kathmandu and Hetauda. The history of this road is quite long. The then District Development Committee Kathmandu had started the work of opening its track in 2055 BS. Due to geographical difficulties and lack of sufficient budget, it took nearly 12 years to open the track, and for about a decade after the track was opened, the road's upgrading could not be done. The provincial government prioritized the road and started its construction on Jestha 17, 2076 BS. The work was initiated with the objective of upgrading the road to be modern and well-facilitated by allocating budget through the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure Development, but even after completing 7 years since the construction began, the work has not been completed. The 14.4-kilometer long road was divided into two sections, Makwanpur and Kathmandu, and contracted for effective completion, but the progress of the road has not been satisfactory. The progress of the 8.1-kilometer road section from MakaiBari to Matatirtha has been seen to be minimal. The work on this section, contracted by Amar Construction for approximately 28 crore rupees including VAT in 2076 BS through the Infrastructure Development Office Lalitpur, has not been progressing as per the target. Due to the work not being done as per the agreement, the company has extended the deadline 5 times so far. However, the progress is slow. According to Raju Shrestha, chief of the Infrastructure Development Office Lalitpur, the physical progress has reached 67 percent and the financial progress has reached 66.02 percent. Due to extreme delays in work, the provincial government has imposed a 10 percent fine on the construction company from the contract amount. According to Navin Singh, chief of the Transport Infrastructure Directorate, this fine amount will be deducted from the payment to be received by the construction company. He stated that although the construction company had committed to completing the work by the end of Baishakh, that situation is not present. Makwanpur Section in the Final Stage The work on the Makwanpur section of the road has reached the final stage. In the Makwanpur section, Sadashiv Himal Construction had signed an agreement in Jestha 2080 BS to complete the work within 2 years at a cost of approximately 18 crore 46 lakh rupees. After the work could not be completed within the stipulated time, the deadline was extended by one year until Jestha 25. The Infrastructure Development Office Makwanpur has stated that the physical progress in that section has reached 90 percent and the financial progress has reached 72.35 percent so far. According to the chief of the office, Sujan Bhandari, the work of road widening, sub-base, culvert, retaining wall, and drainage construction has been completed, while the work of laying the base has been completed by 80 percent. Chief of the office Bhandari stated that approximately three kilometers of the road have been blacktopped and paved, and the remaining 3.3 kilometers of the road are targeted to be completed by Baishakh. If the approximately 20-kilometer long road from Mahalakshmi Khola to Koteshwor in Kathmandu is completed on time, the Kathmandu-Hetauda journey is expected to be shorter and easier. Among other routes connecting the provincial capital and the federal capital, this is considered the shortest route. From Hetauda to Kulekhani, a single route has to be used. After that, among the three options of Sisneri-Dakshinkali, Phakhel-Humane-Pharping, and Mahalakshmi Khola-Matatirtha, this route is the shortest. As the Chakhel area is developing as a vegetable pocket area, this road is expected to be important for easily transporting the vegetables produced in that area to Kalimati in Kathmandu and for further facilitating commuting.