From the tourist point of view, Balupahad in Syangja is known as the best destination. Balupahad, which is under the Syangja road section of Siddharth Highway, is a place of choice for domestic and foreign tourists. Bhalupahad is located on the border of Putlibazar Municipality and Phedikhola Rural Municipality.

Passengers traveling through the highway alight here and make their journey with pleasant pleasure. This highway, which is a destination not only for tourism but also for business, has become more dangerous because of its narrowness, excessive winding and potholes.

In view of the risk, the road division office Pokhara started to clear the narrow road to some extent a few years ago. However, due to lack of maintenance, the commuters who come and go here have to suffer daily. Sharp stones, big potholes, the fear of the mounds falling from above and slipping down to the Setikhola, mud when it rains and dust when the sun shines are something that the commuters have to face every day.

Bishnu Prasad Paudel of Andhikhola Rural Municipality-3 Vichari Chautara says, 'The accident will happen in Bhalupahad because of the dangerous road. The state never paid attention to this. When the road is jammed, we have to wait for 4/5 hours for it to open. To whom should we go and tell the problems of the passengers?' He expressed his complaint that even the leaders who are doing politics in the name of repairing and building the Siddharth Highway do not see the suffering of the people.

Locals have the same anger that the district administration office did not cooperate and coordinate with the relevant agencies for the repair and maintenance of dangerous roads. "It is not the administration's responsibility to provide peace and security in the district," says Paudel, "There is no role of the administration except to issue a statement in case of an incident." JLC Builders took charge of the construction work. Due to delays in the construction work as well as poor quality, it was left unfinished in the middle. Dhruva Pokharel, a technician from Road Division Office Pokhara, who has been directly monitoring, says, "The contractor company has filed a case in court. Due to the pending case in the court, we could not even withdraw the contract in the middle. We have not even been able to continue the construction work by signing another contract.

The office said that there are some difficulties for construction here geographically. He said that there are no disputes in other dangerous places under the Siddharth Highway, so the repair work is going on in full swing. "It should be repaired at least once a year," he added, "The problem is increasing due to lack of maintenance in Bhalupahad for a long time."

Engineer Pokharel said that gravel was laid on Thursday and Friday. District Police Chief Police Superintendent Dadhiram Neupane said that 10 ticks of gravel were brought from the storm drain in collaboration with the Road Division after the risk of the highway increased. He said that the risk was increased when red soil was laid on the pretext of filling the pothole, so the initiative was taken to lay gravel.

red clay use :  Engineering standards or temporary solutions?

Not only Bhalupahad, the potholes on the Syangja road section under the Siddharth highway are also repaired with red soil. Small to big pits are made of red clay. Because of this, when it rains, it becomes muddy and when the sun shines, it becomes very dusty. Pedestrians suffer the same for pedestrians. The red soil used for road maintenance is not as per engineering standards.

The road division office said that for some time red soil was used for convenience. According to the source, when the locals complain, the soil is kept and left for quick disposal. Which solves the problem immediately. But according to technical experts, red clay is only a cheap and temporary solution, which cannot provide a long-term solution.

"After getting wet in the rainy season, the red soil becomes scattered and the road becomes more dangerous," the person said, "Gravel, crushed stone and bituminous mixture should be used to repair it according to technical standards." But, that is not done.'' Without the use of quality materials, such temporary measures affect the stability of the road and increase the risk of accidents.

Therefore, he said, it will be difficult to ensure the safety of passengers until the relevant agencies carry out effective repairs as per the standards.

Road accident in Bhalupahad: 2 killed

According to the data of District Police Office Syangja, there have been 9 road accidents in Bhalupahad since 2080. Passengers and drivers were injured in these incidents. The police said that there was no major damage.