Roof of meditation centre, constructed recently, starts leaking in Lumbini

By Laxman Paudel,Bhairahawa, Apr. 8: The roof of the International Buddhist Hall and Meditation Centre, built at a cost of millions of rupees in Lumbini, has begun leaking.

The centre was built less than a year ago and has not even been formally handed over to the Lumbini Development Trust (LDT). Yet, its roof now requires repairs. 

According to officials of the Trust itself, this is because LDT ignored the recommendations made by the construction consultant.

Last week's heavy rains revealed that the ceiling of the eastern, western and central parts of the 8,300-square metre hall leaked.

The roof of the centre was built in the shape of an umbrella using the Extruded Polystyrene Sandwich (EPS) panels based on the Korean technology. This is supposed to keep the building, which can accommodate 5,000 people, cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

According to the LDT, this is one of the largest auditoriums built with such a roof in the country. But because the Trust ignored the consultant it hired, water now seeps through it.

At the time of construction, Shrestha Consultant of Lalitpur had warned that the roof could spring leaks and had highlighted the need to waterproof it. "But we did not pay attention to it then," admitted one of the  LDT officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "The Trust is more to blame here than the contractor."

The hall was built in two stages at a cost of around Rs. 640 million. The company Anak Arghakhanchi Babul JV carried out the construction in the first phase and Lumbini Arghakhanchi Babul JV did the work in the second phase. 

Santosh Adhikari, a representative for the contractors, told The Rising Nepal that they worked as specified in the design. "We are not at fault here," he asserted. "Nevertheless, we have begun repairing the leaks."

LDT's Project Manager Saroj Bhattarai also acknowledged that the consultants had suggested waterproofing the roof. "This was a new technology and an entirely new experience for us. So, we could not understand all the variables," he said, admitting that the Trust may not have been able to give it the required attention. "But now, we will identify a long-term solution to this."

Bhattarai informed that the Trust had formed a team, which included waterproofing experts, to find a solution.

Construction specialists believe that EPS roofs require two layers of panels or separate waterproofing to prevent leaks. "But we found that neither of these steps had been taken when building the centre," said Laxmi Prasad Subedi, an expert who came to study the leaks from Kathmandu, shared. "We do not know why they did not pay attention to this while constructing the building but the only sustainable solution now is waterproofing."

Subedi believed that to waterproof the entire roof now would cost at least Rs. 50 million. 

Former President Bidya Devi Bhandari laid the foundation stone of the meditation centre and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba inaugurated it in May last year. Chairman of CPN (UML) KP Sharma Oli had taken personal interest in the construction of this hall, despite the structure has violated the Lumbini masterplan.