By Our Correspondent, Simkot, Feb. 12: Road construction on the Kharpu–Simkot section of the Karnali Corridor has stopped due to opposition by the locals.

Residents of Simkot Rural Municipality – 5 have accused the Hilsa Simkot Road Project of preparing a baseless detailed project report (DPR) and hiding it from the people.

“Neither has the project consulted with the locals, nor has it come to study the facts on the ground,” a local Tirth Raj Rokaya said, “They sat in a room, prepared the DPR behind closed doors and are moving forward without giving us any information.”

He argued that the people of the area should be consulted because it was their land that was being acquired.

“We are bearing all the brunt, giving our land without compensation and we don’t even get to have a say in the project,” Rokaya expressed his ire.

According to Rokaya, the current DPR encroaches the land of 312 households of Simkot – 5, but in a cruel irony, it doesn’t actually pass through the ward itself. “All we ask is that the road should pass through our ward too, but nobody has paid any heed to our demands,” Rokaya said adding, “So, we had to halt the construction as the last resort.”

“We will start discussions with the locals after our project chief arrives from Kathmandu,” informed Abhishek Rai, sub-engineer of the project.