Falgunanda Road remains election slogan for decades

By Our Correspondent,Damak, Feb. 22: Work on the 33-kilometre Falgunanda Road linking Damak in Jhapa to Mangsebung in Ilam and Chisapani Panchami in Panchthar has yet to be completed, even after more than three decades since construction began.

The long-delayed project has become a recurring election slogan, leaving political parties and candidates struggling to justify the lack of progress.

Despite adequate budget allocations, the road has remained unfinished due to contractors’ negligence, officials said. Candidates in Jhapa, Ilam and Panchthar have repeatedly pledged to prioritise the road in every election.

The route from Damak through Mangsebung to Chisapani Panchami is a vital access road for residents of the three districts. Considered strategically important for transporting agricultural produce to markets, easing daily travel and linking the hills with the Tarai, the road follows the banks of the Ratuwa River and remains under construction.

The road also connects the former constituencies of ex-prime minister KP Sharma Oli in Damak and late former Constituent Assembly Chair Subas Chandra Nembang in Mangsebung. Completing the road continues to feature prominently in candidates’ election agendas.

According to Shyam Kumar Yadav, chief of the Road Division Office, the 33-kilometre stretch was divided into three contract packages. The first section, covering seven kilometres from Damak Zero Point, was awarded to Mahalakshmi-Kirateshwar JV on August 14, 2018, for Rs. 225.96 million, with a completion deadline of 30 months.

However, the work has not been completed despite four deadline extensions, though construction is currently underway with penalties imposed.

The second (15 km) and third (11 km) sections were contracted to Lumbini-Ganapati JV on February 14, 2020, for Rs. 544.49 million and Rs. 591.53 million, respectively. Although the deadline for both sections expired in March 2023, only about 62 per cent of the second section and 28 per cent of the third had been completed.

After the contractor failed to proceed, the contracts were cancelled in February 2024 and bank guarantees were forfeited. Yadav said that despite budget certainty, the work stalled due to contractor delays.

Although the contractor filed a case at the Patan High Court, the verdict was delivered in favour of the Road Division Office.

Chairperson of Mangsebung Rural Municipality Hemant Rai said vehicles currently use the road, but it is far from complete. Travel becomes difficult during the monsoon, he said, adding that repeated discussions have been held with contractors to expedite the work.

Gopal Guragain, President of the Damak Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said blacktopping the road would significantly boost business in Damak. Easier access for farm produce from hill districts would improve farmers’ livelihoods and substantially increase local trade, he added.

Local Sajan Rai said the Phalgunanda Road, first initiated in 1992 by a committee led by Gopal Koirala, remains incomplete, fuelling public frustration. “It has become nothing more than an election issue,” he said.

He also said that completing the road would make it far easier to bring produce from the eastern hills to the Tarai.