• Friday, 22 August 2025

Absence of coordination hinders highway expansion

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By Our Correspondent,Urlabari, Aug. 14: A lack of coordination among government bodies has hindered the timely execution of the East–West Highway expansion project.

While work was being carried out according to the pre-approved Detailed Project Report (DPR), it was found that there was no outlet for water on the northern side of a three-kilometre stretch in the Urlabari section of Morang. 

As a result, the settlement on the northern side has been inundated. Following the flooding of the settlement, Urlabari Municipality wrote to the Prime Minister’s Office, requesting that the road expansion be carried out in a way that allows for water drainage.

The road under construction near the Bakraha River is approximately 10 foot higher than the settlement to its north-east. Although the road's height gradually decreases towards the east, the water outlet to the north has been blocked. 

Due to the drainage constructed on top of the road, water from the settlement cannot flow southwards. Therefore, the municipality has requested that a drainage channel be constructed within the road’s right-of-way at the edge of the settlement, directing the water towards the Mawa or Bakraha rivers.

“We had submitted a petition to the PMO demanding that drains be built on both the east and west sides of the Aitabare and Malbanse petrol pump area, directing the water to the Bakraha and Mawa rivers. The PMO assigned the responsibility of resolving the issue to Economic Adviser Dr. Yuba Raj Khatiwada,” said Mayor of Urlabari Municipality, Ganga Prasad Kharel. 

Following this, consultations were held with the Federal Water Supply and Sewerage Management Project regarding the construction of the drainage, and an agreement was reached to commence work.

However, Jagat Prajapati, head of the Itahari office of the Road Department’s ADB Project Directorate for the Kakadbhitta–Laukahi Road Project (western section), said that the estimated cost for the drainage system was Rs. 250 million which has made it impossible to proceed with the new proposals. 

“In the initial phase, discussions had been held on managing a budget of up to Rs. 100 million for the work. But as the cost estimates turned out to be much higher, discussions would also need to be held with donor agencies,” Prajapati said, adding that there would be no problem in carrying out the work once funding was secured.

Surat Lal Chaudhary, head of the Federal Water Supply and Sewerage Management Project in Biratnagar, said that they had already prepared a DPR of Rs. 170 million and sent it to the Department of Water Supply. 

“We have no information regarding the funding. We have learnt that the Department of Water and Sewerage Management has already sent a letter to the Road Department. In our discussions, the road expansion project indicated that it would not be difficult to construct the drainage within the road’s right-of-way,” he said. 

With rapid urbanisation, the old culverts used for water outflow have been blocked. The project has spent tens of millions of rupees building the Mawa bridge, but there is neither an inlet for water from the north nor an outlet to the south. This is the case not only for the bridge, but for all the culverts built between the Mawa and Bakraha rivers, none of them provide water drainage.

It appears that at the time, the project did not study whether water outlets existed. Wherever there were old bridges and culverts, new ones are being built, but at present, there is no possibility for water collected on the northern side to flow southwards through these structures.

Mayor Kharel has warned that if drainage is not constructed on the northern side of the highway, work will be halted.

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