Looking east from Gaurigunj Rural Municipality in Jhapa, an incomplete structure to cross the Kankai River is visible. That dream of the locals has been incomplete for 14 years.

The 725-meter-long concrete bridge has been abandoned since 2068 BS. The bridge under the Hulaki Highway was supposed to be built in four years. But due to the extreme negligence of the construction company and the government's neglect, it is still incomplete after 14 years.

This bridge is not only a structure connecting the two banks of the Kankai River, but also a crucial link of the Hulaki Highway. However, since the bridge has not been built yet, locals take free boats at their own risk during the rainy season. In winter, they are forced to pay to cross bamboo stilts. 'What will we feel if the bridge is not built?' said Rohit Rajbanshi, who was heading towards Jhapa rural municipality from Gaurigunj. 'We have been forced to endure such pain for years. No one has listened to our problems.'

On 2068 Jestha 14, Ravi Singh's Mahadev Khimti Construction and Harinarayan Prasad Sah Rauniyar's Pappu Construction jointly won the contract for the construction of the Kankai Bridge for about Rs 330 million. There was an agreement to complete the work within four years. However, far from the bridge being built by 2072, the deadline was extended five times.

The two banks of the bridge have not been connected yet. There is no river on the side where the bridge is half built. The river rushes in the rainy season on the side where there is no bridge. So far, only 10 out of 19 spans have been built. After Pappu Construction left the partnership in 2075, Mahadev Khimti started working alone.

According to the Road Department, only about 65 percent of the bridge has been completed. Although the last deadline expired in Ashar 2080, there has been no progress since then. Now the company has again demanded an extension of time until 2084.

The nexus of politics and contracts

The delay in the construction of the Kankai Bridge is not a technical problem but a political one, says local Raghunath Prasad Sah. ‘We have suffered so far due to political problems,’ he said.

The owner of Pappu Construction, Rauniyar, is a former MP. Mahadev Khimtika Singh is the president of the Nepal Construction Entrepreneurs Federation.

These companies had previously stalled contracts across the country. Even though the government blacklisted Pappu Construction, they were able to maintain the contract agreement due to their political access.

This bridge falls in the home district of the then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Minister for Physical Infrastructure Devendra Dahal. Oli had promised many times in his election speeches that ‘the Kankai Bridge would be built soon.’ However, the locals of Jhapa and Gaurigunj are still waiting to see when the incomplete bridge would be built.

On October 26, Physical Infrastructure Minister Kulman Ghising had inspected the incomplete Kankai Bridge on-site. At that time, he had said that ‘now the trend of taking contracts but not working will end’ and had announced that sick contracts like Kankai would be terminated.

Immediately after this, the Road Department has initiated the process of terminating 17 contracts including Kankai. Construction companies have been asked to submit ‘reliable plans and credible commitments’ within 15 days.