What will be the progress of road construction in 36 months? The progress of the 25 km long Dunai-Lassicap section under the Bheri Corridor is disappointing. Surya-Shreya-Shanti JV signed a construction contract for 130.4 million in March 2078. The progress of this road is only 13%.

According to the construction company, the delay in the purchase process of the explosives to be used in the area where there is hard rock has caused a delay in the construction. With only nine months remaining before the expiry of the contract, an agreement has been signed with the Nepali Army for the purchase of explosives.

After the construction of the strategically important road connecting India's Rupadiya to Marim Pass on the China border has been very slow, the all-party monitoring team of the district has requested the Very Corridor Office, the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure, the Road Department and the Prime Minister's Office to cancel the contract. 

'Despite nine months left for the working deadline, little progress has been seen, there are neither tools nor workers at the construction site. After the monitoring, we have requested the relevant office to cancel the contract in writing,' said Shyam Bahadur Rokay, coordinator of the monitoring committee and head of the district coordination committee. He said that the builders did not show any diligence in completing the work they had undertaken. 

Very Corridor office is in Jajarkot. However, most of the land in the corridor construction area falls under Dolpa. Locals have also demanded that this office should be shifted to Dolpa. "Instead of moving the office to Dolpa, we will draw attention to Jajarkot office from here," he said.

Chief District Officer Rom Bahadur Mahat said that looking at the current situation of Dunai-Lassicap road construction, there is no possibility of the contractor company doing the work. Prazia Mahat said that it was decided to recommend action according to the public procurement regulations as the builders were unaware of not doing the work they had been entrusted with.

Dhruv Shahi, director of Surya-Shreya-Shanti JV, said that the work has been delayed due to the need to use explosives in the hard rocky terrain of the Dunai-Lassicap section . He claims that the construction was delayed because the army did not give permission for the purchase of explosives for months. 

'Since more than 50 percent of this road is only rock, the progress is seen to be low, the contract deadline  The rest is, if the explosives are available, I can complete the work within the specified time," he said. He claimed that there was no progress in the construction because the Veri Corridor Office and Kaike Rural Municipality were pushing to work from "zero point". "We didn't have explosives to work like that, if we had allowed them to work in a place other than rocks, the progress would have reached 50 percent more," he said, "I went to the process of canceling the contract instead of working and seeking legal remedies."  He says that 4,000 cubic meters of mesh, two excavators and a tractor have been kept at the construction site for

work. He said that 17 percent of the road construction work has been paid.

Bheri Corridor Office Chief Sunil Ranjitkar has said that even though the all-party monitoring team has demanded action, if the contractor does not work according to the schedule of the contract, he will proceed with the process of breaking the contract . "It has definitely been difficult for the construction businessmen to work due to the lack of purchase of explosives for a long time, but the progress has been seen to be low when the businessmen do not work even on flat terrain," he said.

He said that since the agreement was signed with the army only last Tuesday, the process of purchasing explosives will take a few more months. "Last October, the Ministry of Defense decided to provide explosives to the Bheri Corridor office. At that time, there was an assurance that the work would be started within a month after an agreement for management," said Ranjitkar, head of the office.

There was lack of staff to complete the Dunai-Lassicap road construction. "Since three technicians have just been appointed, now the engineers are working in Dolpa," he said.

This road connecting the tri-national border has yet to be constructed for another 35 kilometers. About 35 km more was constructed from Lasicap to Sisaul, and 40 km track from Marim Naka to Sisaul has been opened. Corridor office chief Ranjitkar said that preparations are being made to hand over the construction of the Lasicap-Sisaul section to the army.