As seven years are about to pass since the start of the construction of the Parliament building in the Singha Durbar complex without completion, preparations are being made to extend the deadline once again. Although the most recent extension expired on 16 Poush, work continued without officially extending the deadline. Now, after six more months have passed without completion, preparations are underway to extend the deadline for the sixth time. 

The contract for the construction of the Parliament building was awarded on 16 Ashoj 2076 with the aim of operating the House of Representatives formed after the 2079 elections. However, as the building was not completed even by the time a new House of Representatives was formed after the 2082 elections, meetings have been hurriedly conducted in the multipurpose hall. National Assembly meetings have also been held in the old hall of the Agriculture Committee.

The Federal Parliament Secretariat has stated that it has been difficult to conduct House of Representatives meetings because the multipurpose hall is cramped. “It has been very difficult to conduct House of Representatives meetings as the Parliament building is not yet ready,” said Secretariat Undersecretary and Spokesperson Ekram Giri. “For now, there is no alternative; we have managed as best we can.” He also informed that the hall being used for the National Assembly is old and technically inadequate. 

While the multipurpose hall was being prepared for immediate use, the Department of Urban Development and Building Construction had stated that the Parliament building would be completed and handed over by the first week of Jestha. However, even as Shrawan has begun, neither the Ministry of Infrastructure Development nor the Federal Parliament Secretariat can say when the Parliament building will be fully operational. About 95 percent of the work on the building has been completed so far. 

Parliament Secretariat Spokesperson Giri said that although the construction appears to have gained momentum, it is still unclear when it will be finished. He also mentioned that there are problems managing halls for parliamentary committees. “We have to run meetings depending on which committee hall is available at any given time,” he said. 

There are four committees under the National Assembly, ten under the House of Representatives, and two joint committees. Currently, due to insufficient halls, it has been difficult to conduct committee meetings. 

The contract for the Parliament building was awarded to Tundi-Sec JV for a total of Rs 5.6727 billion. The initial deadline was until 16 Ashoj 2079. After the work was not completed, the deadline was first extended to 30 Chaitra 2079. The second extension was until 19 Ashoj 2080, the third until 19 Chaitra 2080, the fourth until 18 Chaitra 2081, and the fifth until 16 Poush 2082.

The building construction is being carried out under the Ministry of Infrastructure Development. The minister of that ministry is Sunil Lamsal. Chief of the Special Building Construction Project, Roshan Shrestha, said that not much work remains. “All work on the House of Representatives hall has been completed; false ceiling installation is ongoing in the National Assembly hall, and wall paneling is also underway,” he said. “Apart from these, all other works are in their final stages.” 

The contract for the interior was awarded to KC-Shyamsundar-Baniya JV. The contract amount is Rs 2.3454 billion. The agreement was signed on 17 Ashar 2080, with a completion deadline within Ashar 2081. However, as the work was not completed, the deadline was extended to 16 Chaitra 2081. When the work was still not finished, the deadline was extended a second time to 16 Poush 2082. As the work was still not completed within this period, the deadline was extended a third time to Baisakh 2083. The work is still not finished. Now preparations are underway to extend the deadline for the fourth time. 

The Parliament building is being constructed on 156 ropani of land in the Singha Durbar complex. The new building has five floors. There, the House of Representatives, National Assembly building, central lobby, office building for very important persons, library, and museum are being prepared. Separate buildings have been constructed for the parliamentary party office, parliamentary committee, Parliament Secretariat, cafeteria, press, and printing. Infrastructure has been prepared to park 476 four-wheelers and 800 two-wheelers. The building for security personnel has also been completed. 

The separate contract for roofing was awarded to Channelink Engineering Company for Rs 37.9 million. Although the contract was signed on 27 Falgun 2080, the work has not been completed yet. As the work is not finished, preparations are being made to extend this deadline as well. “It will take some more time to complete the roofing work,” said Special Building Construction Project Chief Shrestha. “Since materials have to be brought from India, a lot of time is spent in transportation. We are even bringing the necessary machinery here to prepare the required materials on site.” He claimed that all the necessary materials have now arrived.

All work on the House of Representatives hall has been completed. Only some general finishing work remains. “The false ceiling work in the National Assembly is in its final stage,” said Shrestha, who is also the spokesperson for the Department of Urban Development and Building Construction. “The false ceiling work has to be done up to the fourth layer. Currently, work on the final layer is underway. After that, lighting installation and wall paneling will be done.” 

Shrestha said that since the 15th amendment to the Public Procurement Regulations allows for an extension of up to one year, the deadline will be extended for some time. “All contract deadlines have expired, but the 15th amendment addresses deadline extensions,” he said. “Preparations are underway to extend the deadlines as per legal provisions.”