The division office has finally called for tenders for rock anchoring and rock netting work to control landslides in the Tuinkhola area of the Narayangadh-Muglin road, where landslides have been blocking traffic for the past two years.
We use Google Cloud Translation Services. Google requires we provide the following disclaimer relating to use of this service:
This service may contain translations powered by Google. Google disclaims all warranties related to the translations, expressed or implied, including any warranties of accuracy, reliability, and any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and noninfringement.
Those who travel to Kathmandu or Pokhara via the Narayangadh-Muglin road have hardly forgotten the pain caused by the Tuinkhola landslide near Muglin during the rainy season. It has been two to three years since the Tuinkhola landslide, which repeatedly blocks the road during the rainy season, started causing trouble. As the rainy season ends, the landslides do not occur much. And the efforts to control the landslide also slow down.
It started raining continuously, and the Tuinkhola landslide started blocking the road. This time, as the landslide started to occur, a tender notice has finally been issued for the landslide control work. On the morning of April 20, due to a dry landslide, only one-way traffic was allowed near the Tuinkhola. On April 24, the road was also operated in one direction for a while due to a landslide. An accident also occurred that afternoon.
A stone that fell from Tuinkhola fell on the fuel tank of a car moving on the road, causing the car to catch fire. Chitwan District Police Spokesperson DSP Ravindra Khanal said that there were no casualties as the fire was extinguished immediately. The next day, on the morning of April 25, a landslide blocked the road in both directions. On the same day, the Division Road Office of Bharatpur finally issued a tender notice.
The Division Road Office has called for tenders on April 25 for the landslide control work of Tuinkhola and Ad's Namsi Khola. For now, tenders have been called for the Muglin side of Namsi Khola and the Tuinkhola landslide control, said Engineer Krishna Acharya, Information Officer of the Division Road Office. He said that tenders will also be issued soon for the Bharatpur side of Namsi and the Kalikhola work. A budget of Rs 430 million has been allocated for the work of these four places.
Landslides and rocks have fallen from a height of 105 meters in Tuinkhola. Even if small rocks fall from a high place, there is a risk of a major accident if they hit vehicles moving below. In addition, passengers are often frustrated when large landslides occur and the road is blocked for hours. Engineer Acharya said that even after the tender notice is issued, an agreement can be signed with the construction contractor who is selected after completing all the procedures as early as Asad 15. ‘Monsoon season is coming. We have issued a contract. It is not possible to say now whether work can be done during the monsoon after the agreement. It is not like during winter. It is said that there will be less rain than other times, it will be dry. If the contract is signed and the rain decreases, the work can be done,’ said Information Officer Acharya.
He said that rock anchoring and rock netting will be used to prevent landslides. 'As soon as the contract is signed, we first cut and clean the sections that are stuck together.' Then rock anchoring is done. This means bringing the strong rod to a strong section within four to five meters from the surface. Due to which the weak surface does not fall down,' said Arjun Ghimire, another engineer of the office. Similarly, covering other small stones with a special net to prevent them from falling down is called rock netting. Engineer Ghimire said that there are three types of nets to be used in this way. 'There is also a normal rock net. There is also a high-strength net. There is also a 3D mesh that can be filled with gravel and used to grow plants. We plant the plants by placing the net and leaving them. Due to which the plants will grow later and prevent landslides,' said Engineer Ghimire.
Narayangadh-Muglin road is a very busy road with more than 12,000 vehicles plying daily.
This road is the main road connecting the capital Kathmandu and the tourist city of Pokhara with the eastern and western parts of the country. The hill has been completely bare due to continuous landslides in Tuinkhola. The length of the landslide is 165 meters. The landslide has fallen from a height of up to 105 meters. This area is at high risk during the monsoon.
Landslides have been occurring in this area for the past two years during the monsoon season and the road has been blocked for a long time. Arjun Ghimire, engineer of the Division Road Office, informed that landslides started occurring in Tuinkhola from Asad 3 last year. He said that the road was blocked for 184 hours due to repeated landslides in Tuinkhola last year. The biggest landslide occurred on Asoj 3 and 7.
Engineer Ghimire said that the landslide on Asoj 3 blocked the road for 46 hours continuously and the landslide on the 7th blocked it for 58 hours continuously. This road, which is used by small and large vehicles, buses and trucks transporting goods, is the lifeline of the capital. When such a road is closed for a long time, it not only inconveniences the passengers but also affects the supply system of the capital.
