The work of opening the track of the road, which was started in 2065 BS, has been completed. However, its expansion, upgrading and blacktop work is at a slow pace.
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The construction of the Saljhandi-Sandhikharka-Dhorpatan road under construction here has not gained momentum. Only 44 percent of the road has been completed in 18 years. The work of opening the track of the road, which was started in 2065 BS, has been completed. However, its expansion, upgrading and blacktop work is at a slow pace.
The length of this road is 197 kilometers. So far, only 36 kilometers have been blacktopped, said the chief engineer of the road project, Gagal Bahadur Bhandari. Of which, 4.5 km have been blacktopped in Rupandehi, 4 in Palpa and 26.5 km in Arghakhanchi. The target is to blacktop 20 km of the road in the current fiscal year. Currently, blacktop work is ongoing up to Khursane-Patau, Mate-Bhadar and Purkot-Arkhabang.
The construction of the road connecting Saljhandi in Rupandehi, Khursane in Palpa, Arghakhanchi headquarters Sandhikharka, Purkotdaha in Gulmi and Dhorpatan in Baglung had begun. Its estimated cost was 8 billion. It has now increased to 11 billion. The budget for the current fiscal year is 380 million rupees. Bhandari said that despite the demand for an additional amount of 650 million, the Finance Ministry has stated that it cannot provide the budget due to resource pressure. 'The work has not been done due to lack of budget,' he said, 'We are submitting the file.'
Dhorpatan is a tourist road. After its construction, it will be convenient for foreign tourists visiting the Dhorpatan hunting reserve. Bhandari said that this is a short distance route. ‘Once the road is completed and transportation is operational, it will bring about a big change in the tourism sector,’ said Bhandari. ‘After the arrival of tourists, the economic activity of the hilly districts of Palpa, Arghakhanchi, Gulmi and Baglung, including Rupandehi, will increase.’ With this, migration will stop. Businessmen and entrepreneurs who have left work in the meantime can return to work.’ He said that a budget of Rs. 1.5 lakh is required to complete this road. The road connects four districts of Lumbini and one district of Gandaki Province with the Terai. Blacktopping has been completed in Rupandehi. 22 kilometers of blacktopping is being done from Khursane in Palpa to Patauti in Arghakhanchi. 7 kilometers of blacktopping is being done from Mate to Bhadar in Sandhikharka. Work has progressed on the 19-kilometer stretch from Purkotdaha to Arkhabang in Gulmi, 7 kilometers from Sirseni to Gangare in Gulmi, and 26 kilometers from Purkotdaha to Sirseni in the same year. Work is also underway on the 22-kilometer stretch from Burtibang to Dhorpatan in Baglung.
Engineer Puri Poudel, Information Officer of the Road Project, said that the work could not be completed quickly due to problems such as lack of budget and failure of construction contractors to complete the work on time. ‘The Dhorpatan road is a multi-faceted project,’ said Krishna Prasad Shrestha, Mayor of Sandhikharka Municipality, ‘When tourists enter the district through this road, the economic activity of Arghakhanchi will increase. The large presence of foreign and domestic tourists going to the hunting reserve through this road will increase the activity in the district.’ He stressed that the federal government should give high priority to the road and allocate the budget.
He said that after the Dhorpatan road is regularized, it will be easier for the residents of Pyuthan and Rolpa to travel between Butwal and Kathmandu via Sandhikharka rather than Bhaluwang in Dang. For that, the Sandhikharka-Khalanga road is also in the final stage of blacktopping. The Dhorpatan road is expected to make Arghakhanchi a confluence of hilly districts. The Patauti-Tamghas road in Arghakhanchi under the Saljhandi-Sandhikharka-Dhorpatan road has reached the final stage of blacktopping. After the road is made operational, it will be much easier for the residents of Gulmi to travel via Tamghas-Patauti-Saljhandi road rather than Tansen in Palpa, said Gulmi Resunga Municipality Mayor Khildhwaj Panthi.
‘As soon as the construction of the Patauti-Tamghas road is completed, we will operate public vehicles from here to facilitate daily traffic on the Patauti-Tamghas road,’ he said, ‘This will be an easy and short distance for travel.’ He said that the Dhorpatan road will reduce the distance between Gulmi and the Terai and will make it much easier to export food crops, vegetables, goats, chickens, eggs and other goods produced in the hills to Butwal city.
