The project claims that work has begun on both Kavre and Sindhuli to avoid problems during the upcoming monsoon season.
What you should know
Work has been contracted to proceed on the 3.2-kilometer section of the BP Highway that was damaged by the flood. Work has been started on both the Kavre and Sindhuli sides to prevent problems during the upcoming monsoon. The concerned offices have stated that the work has been done by giving priority to the section that has the most problems.
The flood of 2081 Asoj caused the most damage to a 30.5 km stretch of the highway from Bhakundebensi to Nepalthok. Currently, a two-lane road is being constructed in that stretch. Three packages have been signed for Kavre and one for Sindhuli. Lama-Nawakantipur JV has won the contract for the 11 km stretch from Bhakundebensi to Charsaybensi for Rs 1.14 billion.
Suman Yogesh, Chief of Road Division, Bhaktapur, said that work is being done simultaneously on the Chowkidanda, Katunje and Charsaybensi sections, which are facing more problems. ‘Work is being done to build a reinforced earth wall in the Chowkidanda section, while micro piles and RCC walls are being constructed in the Charsaybensi section.’ He said that the work of cutting walls to widen the road is also ongoing.
‘A plumb wall should be built at a height of 10 meters to install the saw wall, about 225 meters of saw wall is being built in the Chowkidanda section,’ Yogesh said, ‘RCC wall is being installed in the Pipla-Dalabensi section.’ We are giving priority to those sections where temporary roads have been built across the river until the monsoon.’ He said that the wall has been installed as per the design in that section and work is being done to make it navigable before the monsoon. ‘In difficult sections, work will be done till 11 pm as per the requirement,’ Yogesh said. The contract for the 9-km stretch from Charsaybensi to Dalabesi was signed with Khani-Kamaljit-Avan JV for Rs 1.22 billion excluding VAT. The agreement for both contracts was signed last Ashar.
The contract for the 2.3-km stretch from Pipla to Dalabesi was signed with Uma & Company-Bhandari-Amarjyoti JV last Kartik. The contract amount for this section is Rs 688 million. JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) will construct a 3.2 km road from Piple to Barkhekhola. The road is being constructed in this section with a grant of Rs 2.63 billion from the Japanese government.
Arjun Prasad Aryal, Head of the Development Assistance Implementation Division under the Road Department, said that JICA is in the process of selecting a construction company. “JICA will sign a contract agreement with the construction company by March,” he said. “After that, we will ask the construction company to be deployed at the construction site and work will be done smoothly during the monsoon, so the permanent construction work will start only after the monsoon.” Aryal said that JICA will complete the work on the section it has taken on by the end of 2027.
Currently, a contract agreement has been signed for 27.3 km of the 30.5 km section. The 5 km section from Barkhekhola to Nepalthok falls in Sindhuli. The contract for the section has been awarded to Kharidhunga-Ghising-Kshitij JV. Its contract amount is Rs 550 million excluding VAT. The contract agreement for the section was signed in the second week of Ashad last year. The Road Department has provided Rs 7.5 billion to the Road Division Bhaktapur and Rs 1 billion to the Khurkot section for the permanent construction and maintenance of the BP Highway.
If the contract is awarded, the work of RCC walls, gabion walls and plumb concrete is being carried out, said Parashmani Hamal, head of the Road Division Khalte, Sindhuli. ‘So far, the construction progress is 20 percent, the construction period of all the contracted sections is two years,’ he said, ‘There are three places in this section that are more vulnerable to rain, we are focusing on those places.’ He claims that there will be no shortage of construction materials and that if there are no problems, arrangements will be made to drive vehicles even if there is no blacktop work before the rains.
‘Work is currently being carried out according to the schedule,’ said Hamal, ‘there is a higher risk of rain in the Nepalthok, Aapghari and Balu sections, now work is being concentrated on this section.’ Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Madhav Prasad Chaulagain, who returned from an on-site inspection of the BP Highway a few days ago, said that work is being carried out at a rapid pace to make it easier to travel during the rainy season. ‘Whether it is a matter of policy or budget, we will not allow problems to arise during the construction process,’ he said, ‘but we have asked the businessmen to work in a way that the road does not become blocked during the rainy season, and that vehicles can operate smoothly.’
