DHADING: Construction of a motor-able bridge designed to connect Dhading and Nuwakot districts at Trishuli River is yet to conclude, five years since its inception.

The Road Division Office, Bharatpur had awarded the construction contract of Rs150 million to a joint venture of Sapana Himdung and Thokar Construction Company and Nagarjuna Construction Company in 2014.

As per the agreements, construction of the bridge should have been completed by 2016/17. However, contractors are throwing excuses to delay the project, said Chief of Dhading District Co-ordination Committee, Jagannath Nepal.

According to locals, construction delays have compounded logistical challenges in hauling materials required to reconstruct houses and facilities destroyed during the April earthquake of 2015.

Moreover, locals of rural villages in the region are also bearing the brunt of additional costs as they have to hire porters to carry daily essentials, in absence of a motor able bridge.

Although the locals mounted pressure of Road Division Office to expedite the snail-paced-construction, actions to that end have not yet been taken, according to local Yadu Kumar Khatiwada.

Only 40 per cent of the construction works of Trishuli’s longest motor able bridge (192 metres) have concluded so far, five years since the project began.

In this backdrop, the locals have demanded stern actions against the contractors while accusing them of negligence in infrastructure development.

– https://thehimalayantimes.com