By Lokendra Joshi, Darchula, Aug 24: The only highway that links Khalanga, the district headquarters of Darchula, with the Terai region and the nation's capital city Kathmandu has been disrupted for nearly a week.

A landslide that occurred on August 18 and blocked the highway at Chunya Bheer, in Mahakali Municipality-9 has obstructed large vehicles such as bus, truck from entering or exiting from Khalanga.

As the landslide has also sunk a part of the road, the road area has been narrowed which makes it possible only for the small vehicles to pass through. But, with efforts to cut off the rock for widening the road, not even small vehicles are allowed to ply now.

People travelling to Terai and other places have to cross the obstructed road section on foot by taking a jeep to Dattu from Khalanga as the buses for Terai and other places are available in a little distance from the landslide area, according to the district police office.

Deepak Badu, a transport entrepreneur, said that vehicles were stopped in Khalanga due to road obstruction for the last six days.

Puskar Airi, a police inspector at the district police office, said that efforts were ongoing to widen the road with the use of an excavator. As it is a rocky and steep down area where the landslide has occurred, it has added difficulty to widen the road in time. However, we hope the road section will open within a few days after widening it, he said.