Sarlahi, June 14: The expansion work of the Mahendra Highway, a national pride project, has slowed down significantly.
Construction delays have been attributed by contractors to the sharp rise in fuel and construction material prices.
In the Sarlahi, Mahottari and Dhanusha sections, work on bridges, culverts and road widening has been ongoing since last year as part of the conversion of the highway into a four-lane road.
The Kamala-Dhalkebar-Pathlaiya Road Project (Eastern Section) has acknowledged that progress has been sluggish.
Project chief and senior divisional engineer Rajesh Kumar Das said that although around 47 per cent of the work should have been completed by now, only about 25 per cent has been achieved.
He said contractors continue to cite rising costs as the main reason behind the delay despite repeated pressure from the project office.
“We have been continuously urging them to speed up the work, but they say the prices of fuel and construction materials have increased significantly, so work is not progressing as expected,” he said.
According to Das, instead of the required 800 to 1,000 workers per district, only around 50 to 60 workers are currently seen at the construction sites.
During his recent visit to Madhes Province, Minister for Infrastructure Development Sunil Lamsal instructed officials and contractors to expedite the highway expansion work so that it can be completed on time. According to the latest update, overall progress across the three districts is 22 per cent behind the target.
Among them, Dhanusha has recorded the highest progress at 28 per cent, followed by Sarlahi at 25 per cent, while Mahottari has the lowest at 23 per cent, the project stated.
Delays in shifting electricity poles, tree cutting and auction processes initially slowed the project, but contractors say the main challenge now is the sharp rise in fuel and construction material prices.
Sujit Rijal of Roswa Construction said that work initially progressed quickly but has slowed significantly after fuel prices nearly doubled.
“It has become extremely difficult to continue construction since fuel prices increased,” he said.
The highway expansion covers a 74.75-kilometre stretch from Kamala Bridge in Dhanusha to Bagmati Bridge in Sarlahi. Three construction companies have been awarded contracts for the project. The Kamala-Bardahari 22.07 km section is being constructed by IKK Infra Ltd India, while the Bardahari-Phuljor 29.74 km and Phuljor-Bardahari 22.94 km sections are being built by Chinese company SW JEC and Roswa Construction Company RCC Joint Venture, under contracts worth Rs. 12.8 billion.
The project is being implemented with World Bank assistance of Rs. 18.6 billion, with a target to complete the expansion by 2027.
The existing two-lane Mahendra Highway will be upgraded to six lanes in urban and commercial areas with 6.5-metre service lanes on both sides, and four lanes in other sections. #nepal
