Work on road projects across the country has come to a standstill due to a shortage of bitumen (a petroleum-based material used in blacktop). Even projects of national pride and strategic importance have been affected as work has come to a standstill during the blacktop season. Project chiefs say that the blacktop target will not be met in the current fiscal year. 

The blacktop work on the national pride projects Mid-Hill, Hulaki, Koshi, Kaligandaki, Karnali Highways and Kathmandu-Terai/Madhesh Expressway (Fast Track) has been stopped due to lack of bitumen.  Blacktop work has been halted on national pride projects Mid-Hill, Hulaki, Koshi, Kaligandaki, Karnali Highways and Kathmandu-Terai/Madhesh Fast Track due to a lack of bitumen. Blacktop work has come to a standstill on Madan Bhandari Highway, Nagdhunga-Muglin, Jamune-Pokhara, Suryabinayak-Dhulikhel roads. Blacktop work has also been halted on the Nagdhunga-Muglin road section, which carries more than 12,000 vehicles daily. 

The blacktop work could not be done after the stock of bitumen was also exhausted. The 94.66-kilometer road upgrade work is underway from Nagdhunga to Muglin. It has been divided into three sections and contracted. The first section of 12.26 kilometers is Nagdhunga-Naubise, the second section of 43.54 kilometers is Naubise-Malekhu, and the third section of 38.86 kilometers is Malekhu-Muglin.

The second layer of blacktop work on the Nagdhunga-Naubise road section was completed and the final layer of blacktop was starting. The work was ready to be completed before the monsoon on this section, which has daily traffic pressure. Of the 12.26 kilometers that have been upgraded, only 6 km of the final layer of blacktop has been completed. The work has been stopped after the bitumen was exhausted during the blacktop process.

Similarly, the work could not be completed due to the inability to blacktop the old road demolished for blacktop in the Naubise-Malekhu section, said Keshav Prasad Ojha, head of the Nagdhunga-Muglin Road Project East Section. 5,000 tons of bitumen are required for blacktopping this section.

The project has stated that there is a shortage of bitumen while demolishing the 6 km old blacktop road in the Bishaltar and Majhimtar areas of the Malekhu-Muglin section and blacktopping it. Although the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was approved to extract construction materials from Lamabagar in Malekhu, the project is also facing a shortage of construction materials as locals protest and cannot extract them on time.

 As the monsoon season approaches, there is also a risk of landslides in this section. The upgrading of the Nagdhunga-Muglin road has been started with a concessional loan from the World Bank. Sajna Adhikari, head of the Nagdhunga-Muglin Road Project, West Section, said that the blacktop work has been stopped due to the shortage of bitumen. "Work has not been done on this section due to the shortage of bitumen and the increase in diesel prices," she said. "Although the target was to blacktop 20 km of the road in the current fiscal year, only 5 km has been completed so far."

She said that although the first layer of blacktop is 5 km, the target cannot be met due to a shortage of construction materials including bitumen. So far, the overall construction progress on this section is only 42.5 percent. There are problems with movement as roads have been demolished everywhere. As the monsoon season approaches, there is also a risk of landslides in this section. The upgrading of the Nagdhunga-Muglin road has been started with a concessional loan from the World Bank.

The total distance of the Koshi Corridor, which was started in 2065/66, is 162 km. Its construction has been started to connect Basantapur in Tehrathum to the northern border with Kimathanka. The project was said to be completed in 2080/81. After the work was not completed by that time, the time has been extended to 2085/86. The progress is only 46 percent. Its initial cost estimate was 11.93 billion rupees, but it has been revised to 16.20 billion rupees. So far, 6.85 billion rupees have been spent. Work on this road, including blacktop, has now been stopped. 

The work on the Kaligandaki Corridor, which is Gaurav's own project, is not yet complete. It connects Gaindakot in Nawalparasi to Maldhunga Beni-Jomsom-Korla in Parbat. Its total distance is 495 km. Of which, 87 km is gravel and 488 km is blacktop.

85 bridges will have to be built. The construction of the entire project began in the fiscal year 2066/67. The construction progress is 82.05 percent. Dharmendra Kumar Jha, Project Director of the North-South Trade Route Expansion Project Directorate, said that the blacktop work has not been completed due to the shortage of bitumen. ‘The blacktop work was underway,’ he said, ‘but it has been stopped due to the shortage of bitumen.’

The Karnali Corridor, whose construction began in 2065/66, has also been affected by the increase in diesel prices. So far, its overall construction progress is 20.5 percent. When the project was started, it was said to be completed by 2070. Later, the time was extended to 2079/80. Now, the target is to complete it again in 2084/85.

The initial cost estimate for this road was 4.1 billion rupees, but it has been revised to 18.66 billion. ‘Blacktop work was underway on the Tamor Corridor, Saljhandi-Sandhikharka and Kanti Highways,’ said Director Jha, ‘The work on that has also been stopped, and due to the current situation, the target cannot be met.’ 

It has been two decades since the construction of the Mid-Hill Highway, which is a national pride. The work has not been completed yet. The construction progress is 82 percent.  It has been two decades since the construction of the Mid-Hill Highway, which is a national pride. The work has not been completed yet. The construction progress is 82 percent. Out of the 1,879 km of roads to be constructed under the Mid-Hill Highway Project, 462 km has been constructed under other projects and divisions. 1,67.6 km of roads have been blacktopped under the Mid-Hill Project. The construction of 114 bridges has been completed. 

The initial cost estimate of the project was 33.36 billion rupees, but it has been revised to 84.33 billion rupees. So far, 71.91 billion rupees have been spent. It is estimated that 10 million people will benefit after the project is completed. Buddharatna Tuladhar, Project Director of the Mid-Hill Highway Project Directorate, said that although it is the right time (season) for blacktopping, the work has been affected due to the shortage of bitumen.

‘As this work cannot be done, the project construction work is being pushed back further,’ he said, ‘Out of the target of 75 km of blacktop in the current fiscal year, only 23 km has been completed.’ He said that this will affect the progress of the overall project. 

Even though the blacktop road construction work is being done as per the target, there is a shortage of bitumen for additional blacktop, said Deep Barahi, Director of the Madan Bhandari Highway Project Directorate. He said that the pace of work has slowed down due to the shortage of bitumen and the increase in the price of diesel. He said that the blacktop work has now been stopped in Surkhet, Gulmi and Damak. ‘An additional 10 km of road could have been blacktopped in the current year,’ he said, ‘Work is being done only with the available bitumen, more has not been brought in.’ 

The construction of this highway began with the decision of the Council of Ministers on 6 Jestha 2075. According to which, the overall project is targeted to be completed within 2084/85, and so far the construction progress is 58 percent. Its estimated cost is Rs 75 billion. So far, Rs 42 billion has been spent.

It will connect Bahundangi in Jhapa to Rupal in Dadeldhura. Its distance is 1,390 kilometers. Of this, only 740 km falls within the scope of the directorate. The remaining 650 km is under other projects under the Roads Department. 

The project, which was started to benefit about 10 million people in 21 districts of Tarai-Madhesh, has not progressed either due to budget constraints or delays in policy decisions. Kuber Nepali, Director of the Postal Highways Directorate, said that the blacktop work has been stopped in the contracted projects. ‘There is a shortage of bitumen, due to which the blacktop work has not been done,’ he said. ‘The slope work has also been affected due to the increase in the price of construction materials.’ According to him, out of the target of blacktopping 76 km in the current fiscal year, it is not possible to do more than 50 km. ‘It is difficult to meet the target until the supply of bitumen is smooth,’ he said. 

Its construction has been underway for 16 years but the work has not been completed. So far, the construction progress is only 75 percent. The highway construction was started from the fiscal year 2066/67 as per the concept of connecting the area from Kechanakawal in Jhapa to Dodhara Chandani in Kanchanpur in the west. The project, which was started with the aim of benefiting about 10 million people in 21 districts of Tarai-Madhesh, has not progressed due to budget constraints or delays in policy decisions. 

The construction work has not progressed in some places due to lack of contracts. The total distance of this project is 1,857 kilometers. So far, 1,380 kilometers have been blacktopped. Out of 300 bridges to be constructed, only 153 have been constructed. Contract management for 150.90 km of roads and 69 bridges is yet to be completed. 

The distance of the east-west and north-south roads under the postal highway is 975 km and 882 km, respectively. When the project was started, the completion date was set for the fiscal year 2074/75. Now, the time has been revised to 2083/84.

Its cost has been revised to Rs 101.93 billion. The project, which is facing a budget shortage, has now been faced with the problem of bitumen shortage again. ‘Blacktop work has been stopped in Dhangadhi, Kanchanpur, Chitwan’s Madi, Morang, Siraha and other districts,’ said Director Nepali. 

Its cost has been revised to Rs 101.93 billion. The problem of bitumen shortage has now been added to the project, which is facing a budget shortage. The target was to construct 6 kilometers of blacktop road in the current fiscal year on the national pride Kathmandu-Terai/Madhes Fast Track, which is being constructed under the management of the Nepali Army. However, the Nepali Army has stated that the work has been affected by the shortage of bitumen. Its total distance is 70.977 km. The Army says that the price increase in construction materials has also affected other works. The road expansion work being carried out with a concessional loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has also been affected. The construction progress in the Kamala-Kanchanpur section, which is facing the most problems, is not as expected. So far, the overall physical progress in this section is 67 percent.

The work on the western section of the Kakadbhitta-Laukahi road has been stopped due to the increase in the price of petroleum products, said Chudaraj Dhakal, Project Director of the Project Directorate (ADB). 'Work was underway in Kamala-Kanchanpur, but the pace of work has slowed down due to the increase in the price of diesel,' he said, 'This has also affected the expansion of the Jamune-Pokhara, Narayangadh-Butwal roads.' The construction entrepreneurs have been slowing down the pace of construction due to the shortage of bitumen, its price increase and 

The concerned project offices say that due to the increase in the price of construction materials, construction entrepreneurs have been slowing down the pace of construction. 

The shortage of bitumen has affected the work of large projects and blacktop work has not been done in some projects, said Vijay Jaisi, Director General of the Roads Department. ‘There is a shortage of bitumen in the market, the price of construction materials has also increased, which has had a major impact on the overall projects,’ he said, ‘Discussions are being held in the departments and ministries on how to resolve this, and we will soon find some solution.’ 

Shivahari Ghimire, General Secretary of the Federation of Nepal Construction Entrepreneurs, said that despite the steep increase in the price of construction materials, there is no way to work because the government has not paid attention to the adjustment. ‘Even though the Minister of Finance said that the price will be adjusted and you should work, a long time has passed, no decision has been made,’ he said, ‘The pace of construction is slowing down now. There is a shortage of bitumen. The price of diesel, cement, and rods has increased. It is not possible to work at a loss.’