Suryabinayak-Dhulikhel road to be completed in time

By Kedar Timalsina,Banepa, Mar. 17: The expansion of the Suryabinayak–Dhulikhel section of the Araniko Highway has been accelerated.

To ensure that the road expansion project is completed in time, construction work in both Kavrepalanchok and Bhaktapur districts has been intensified.

Bijaya Kumar Mahatto, Chief Superintendent Engineer (SEI) of the Suryabinayak–Dhulikhel Road Project, said that the pace of work has been increased in both districts to complete the project within the scheduled time. He said that expansion work is being carried out on about 16 kilometres of road from Suryabinayak to Dhulikhel under two separate contracts. According to him, 68 per cent physical progress has been achieved so far on the road section from Sanga to Dhulikhel in Kavrepalanchok.

“The contractor responsible for the Kavrepalanchok section has moved ahead with work in all areas. So far, the first layer of Dense Bituminous Macadam (DBM) has been blacktopped on three kilometres of the road in this section. Cement base is being laid in other areas, while sub-base work is underway in some places,” said Mahatto.

He said that disputes in the Banepa market area of Kavrepalanchok have been resolved and construction work is currently underway in the market section. He added that about 85 per cent of the work in the Kavrepalanchok section will be completed by mid-July, and the first layer of blacktop will be finished on the 8.5-kilometre road section by the time.

Mahatto said that major construction work will not be possible for about two months during the monsoon, beginning mid-June. However, contractors are expected to complete all remaining work by the project deadline in December.

Similarly, under the project, 46 per cent physical progress has been achieved so far on the road section from Suryabinayak to Sanga in Bhaktapur district. He said that about 95 per cent of infrastructure work, including drains and retaining walls, has already been completed in the Bhaktapur section.Mahatto said that an underpass of about one kilometre is being constructed in the Sanga area, and around 50 per cent of the work has been completed so far.

“A one-kilometre underpass is being constructed in Sanga. Due to the steep slope of the road from Kathmandu towards Kavrepalanchok, we have excavated about five metres of the road to construct the underpass. The underpass construction is progressing rapidly and is expected to come into operation within the next two months,” he said.

The budget allocated by the government for the Suryabinayak–Dhulikhel road project for the current fiscal year has already been exhausted. However, Project Chief Mahatto said that the expansion work will not be halted due to the budget shortage.

“All the budget allocated for the current fiscal year has been utilised. After receiving bills from the contractors for completed work, we have requested additional funds from the Department of Roads to make payments. Although there may be delays of a few days as the budget takes time to be dispensed, the construction work has not been stopped,” he said.

He added that the department has not arranged a large lump-sum budget because it is difficult to ensure that the entire amount will be spent immediately. However, the Department of Roads and the Ministry of Finance have committed to providing funds as project liabilities arise, ensuring that the project will not face a budget shortage.

Mahatto expressed confidence that, given the current pace of work in both sections, the road expansion project will be completed on time.The 16-kilometre Suryabinayak–Dhulikhel section of the Araniko Highway has been divided into two parts, and expansion work has been ongoing for the past two and a half years.

The 7.5-kilometre section from Suryabinayak to Sanga has been under construction since 2023 by Ashish Kumar Shrestha/Bandhan/Bhagwati JV at a cost of Rs. 3.8893 billion, including VAT.

Similarly, expansion work on the 8.55-kilometre road from Sanga to Dhulikhel began in November 2022 after a contract worth Rs. 4.564 billion, including VAT, was signed with Lama Construction.