When will Manang’s neglected bridges be built?

By Yadu Prasad Bhatt,Manang, Feb. 24: Eight years after the contract was signed, the motorable bridge connecting Ward Nos. 5 and 6 of Nasong Rural Municipality in Manang remains incomplete, with only two pillars erected. The contract was signed on July 4, 2016. 

The contract was jointly awarded to MS Sanjeevani Khadka Krishna and the Caravan Company, with the project scheduled for completion by December 9, 2017. However, only about 30 per cent of the work has been completed, leaving the project abandoned. 

The situation worsened after the contracting company disappeared, leaving the local community distressed.

Similarly, another motorable bridge over the Marsyangdi River at Munje of Ngisyang Rural Municipality-5 was contracted for completion by mid-July 2017 but remains unfinished and abandoned.

The local municipality has repeatedly appealed for the bridge’s completion but each time the contractor vanishes after starting work. Harsh weather conditions in the Himalayan region -- cold and snow in winter, impassable roads during the monsoon, and the constant threat of landslides -- further complicate construction efforts.

Oversight agencies remain indifferent and with most Manang residents living in urban areas, only a few villagers continue to suffer the consequences.

Political complications have also contributed to the delays. House of Representatives Member  Tek Bahadur Gurung elected from Manang was reinstated after a two-year suspension during which he remained inactive. 

Meanwhile, Provincial Assembly Member from the area, Rajiv Gurung, spent his tenure as a minister under multiple governments but is now serving a prison sentence for pending cases. 

On Thursday last week, another Provincial Assembly Member Mnindra Jung Gurung raised the issue of the abandoned bridge connecting Ward Nos. 5 and 6 of Nasong Rural Municipality during a special session of the Gandaki Provincial Assembly, highlighting the project’s neglect and urging the government to take immediate action.

Gurung stressed the severe impact on students and tourists due to the delay in bridge construction and demanded the contract with Caravan’s Chairman Chandra Thakali be terminated to expedite construction with a new contractor. 

Although Thakali promised to complete the bridge in the presence of Infrastructure Development Ministry Secretary Tulsi Bhattarai and Director Ram Parajuliin in July last year, he has since become unreachable.

The project was initially contracted for Rs. 41 million by the former District Development Committee, but even after several extensions, the bridge remains incomplete. With the shift to federalism, the project’s oversight was transferred to the Infrastructure Development Office. 

The first deadline extension was granted on July 13, 2020, and a second extension was set for mid-April 2022. Since then, no further extensions have been granted, nor has any action been taken against the contractor, who has only completed the two pillars and withdrawn approximately Rs. 20 million.

The Infrastructure Development Office said that construction delays have led to increased scrutiny. Due to the abandonment of another bridge over the Marsyangdi River at Munje, Ngisyang Rural Municipality-5, the office has confiscated Rs. 4.2 million from the contractor’s advance payment guarantee.