The much debated MCC Compact has been finally endorsed by the Federal Parliament. Now, Nepal will receive about US$ 500 million grant assistance from the US government within the next five years. The grant will be used to build 312 kilometers of transmission line with a capacity of 400 kilovolts. The transmission line starting from Nanglebhare of Kathmandu will be connected to Hetauda of Makwanpur from Ratmate of Nuwakot. Likewise, the MCA-Nepal will carry out road improvement project in East-West Highway, between Chandrauta-Dhankhola-Bhaluwang-Lamahi to Shivakhola.
The National News Agency (RSS) correspondent has contacted Khadga Bahadur Bista, Executive Director of the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal Development Committee (MCA Nepal), to find out the answer to the question of what happens now after the MCC Compact is approved by the parliament, how the work proceeds and the project is completed on time. Excerpt of the interview:
MCC agreement has been approved by the House of Representatives, now what is the process of project implementation?
Bista: Some project activities are now pending. I do not know much about the parliamentary process, but I hope that the process will be completed soon. I don’t think there will be any problem after that. We need to set a date for when construction will begin. Five years is not counted on the basis of passing by the parliament. We call it Entry Into Force (EIF). The five year period starts from the same day.
We had fixed that two years ago. There was no parliamentary approval at that time. We couldn’t do the initial work on the construction. We couldn’t do most of the land acquisition work because of coronavirus pandemic as well. We could not proceed with the bidding process due to lack of parliamentary approval. These works should be taken forward and the date of implementation should be fixed. Only then does the five-year clock begin.
Is there still some process left to calculate the five year period?
Bista: Some preparatory work remains to be done. Work including environmental impact assessment has also been completed. The work of land acquisition is the biggest issue. It may take much longer time, one of the difficult work. Based on that, it takes more time to work in the field. There is a 315 km long transmission line. It includes 92 wards of 30 municipalities in ten districts. Land acquisition should be done in some places. Must work will be carried out by following Nepal’s Land Acquisition Act, 2034 BS. A committee is formed under the coordination of the Chief District Officers. The committee will finalize and fixes the value of the land. Only then will the land come in the name of MCA Nepal. In between, we will complete the tree counting. With the approval of the Cabinet, the tree removal works will be completed.
Do you have any idea how many trees have to be removed?
Bista: We make a general assessment when it comes to environmental impact assessment. It has a process. In our preliminary sample survey, 217,000 trees, most of them 8 inch or smaller, have to be removed.
Do you think the most complicated task is land acquisition and cutting down trees?
Bista: Of course. We think the most complicated task is land acquisition.
Have you any calculation on compensation?
Bista: According to the general calculations, the cost of compensation was about Rs. 8 billion. Out of that, Rs 1.5 billion has already been distributed in Ratmate of Nuwakot. A substation will be built there. As the transmission line goes through the hills and mountains, it does not cost much. The transmission lines do not pass through cities and market places.
Do we need to work more for road projects?
Bista: We don’t need to carry out environmental impact assessment of the road projects. We will design road projects, according to needs and approval from the concerned agencies.
When will begin the construction works?
Bista: Now that the coronavirus pandemic is almost over, it is possible to sending people to the work area. Now we set the timeframe. In my opinion, the work cannot start before one year.
Experts say that it takes 15 months to begin construction works. Is that right?
Bista: It depends on taking time for land acquition. It may take much longer period of time. The contractor had to be selected. For that, the bidding work had to be taken forward. It takes eight to nine months for bidding process. Land acquisition work should have been done before that. It has also been heard that there are no land maps of local municipalities in many districts. In such cases, the land should be measured first.
Rumour is that only big contractors will be allowed for bidding. Is it true?
Bista: The Government of Nepal used to award contracts to low bidders by following Public Procurement Act. However, in the case of MCC, we first carry out technical evaluation, and publish a ranking. Then only we open the financial proposals. After evaluation of both technical and financial proposals, whoever gets more number will be eligible to award contract. That means the contractors must be technically qualified. The contractor must be competent. The lowest bidder is not the one who gets the contract.
Ramesh Lamsal/RSS
