Construction of Dodhara Chandani ICP to begin soon

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, June 5: The removal of trees and poles at the construction site of the Dodhara Chandani Integrated Check Post (ICP) and Dry Port is in its final stage and construction is expected to begin soon, Nepal Intermodal Transport Development Board (NITDB) said. 

This national priority project is located in Dodhara Chandani Municipality-1 in Kanchanpur district, within the buffer zone of Shukla Phanta National Park.

The government issued an approval to utilise 42.36 hectares of national forest land and remove trees and poles on October 19, 2024.

A bilateral agreement between the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation and the NITDB was subsequently signed on January 8 this year. Permission to fell 1,593 trees within the 42.36 hectares of national forest land for the ICP construction was obtained from the National Park Office on February 6. 

According to the NITDB, 940 of the 1,593 trees have been felled, with the remaining work expected to be completed within next 15 days. 

The project, with an estimated total cost of approximately Rs. 3.80 billion, is being constructed with financial and technical assistance of India. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two governments was signed in June 2023. 

"The Indian side has selected a construction company, and a contract is expected to be signed soon," read a statement by the Board. The project had been stalled for 15 years. 

According to Ashish Gajurel, Executive Director of the NITDB, with the completion of the tender process and the tree management work within the next fifteen days, construction is expected to commence within one to two months. The dry port will feature modern trade infrastructure, including roads, parking areas, platforms, warehouses, weighbridges, container yards, passenger terminals, customs, banks, and animal and bird food laboratories (quarantine). 

Its completion and operation are expected to facilitate trade and be a milestone in the development of the Sudurpaschim Province and adjoining areas in the western-most part of the country.