During that period, he has worked on everything from opening the Tatopani checkpoint, which had been blocked for a long time due to landslides, to terminating the contract for the Kankai Bridge in Jhapa, which had been in a state of ailing condition for 14 years without any work.
What you should know
It has been 100 days since Kulman Ghising assumed the responsibility of the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Physical Infrastructure and Transport, and Urban Development in the government formed after the Gen-G movement.
During that period, he has worked on everything from opening the Tatopani checkpoint, which has been blocked by landslides for a long time, to terminating the contract for the Kankai Bridge in Jhapa, which has been ailing for 14 years without any work.
He said that efforts have been made to listen closely to the voices of passengers suffering due to incomplete roads and bridges, farmers forced to keep their fields fallow due to lack of irrigation, and to speed up those projects.
He said that during the on-site inspection of projects under the ministry in these 100 days, direct dialogue with stakeholders, and administrative review, he found that delays, negligence, excuses, and a tendency to run away from responsibility have held development hostage.
‘There is a plan, there is a budget, and a contract has been signed - but there is no work,’ he said. ‘It is unacceptable that a bridge cannot be built for 14 years. Citizens are forced to travel for one and a half hours without constructing a bridge of strategic importance.’ He said that efforts have been made to discourage the act of holding development projects hostage. Similarly, 40 contracts that became sick under the Road Department have been terminated.
Similarly, 22 sick contracts under the Water Resources and Irrigation Department, including the national pride Sunkoshi Marine Multipurpose Project, with a contract value of Rs 14.22 billion, have been terminated. 4 sick contracts under the Ministry of Urban Development have been terminated.
Minister Ghising said that the investment model (modality) for the Budhi Gandaki Reservoir Hydropower Project with a capacity of 1200 MW, with an estimated cost of about Rs 374 billion, has been determined and sent to the Ministry of Finance for agreement.
‘I want to express a clear commitment, I will not compromise with non-working structures, the tendency not to shoulder responsibility and any activities against the public interest,’ he said, ‘These 100 days are just the beginning, there is still a lot of work to be done, more improvements need to be made.’ He said that 101 major works have been completed through all three ministries in the 100 days.
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