Waste management project in limbo

BY HARI PRASAD KOIRALA,Urlabari, Apr. 20: Two large buildings stand on two bighas of land near Kamalpur Community Forest in Ward No. 3 of Letang Municipality in Morang. Two massive tanks have been constructed near the buildings for sewage dumping. Facilities such as a security guard house, electricity and drinking water have already been arranged. However, because the project was started without securing adequate resources, this sewage construction and treatment project (a mega project) has remained incomplete for seven years.

Due to a lack of coordination among the Forest Office, Letang Municipality and the Federal Drinking Water Project, a project that was supposed to be completed within two years is still unfinished even after seven years. To manage waste and sewage in the Municipality, the Federal Drinking Water Project had called for a tender worth Rs. 28,99,58,080. The Golden Bikoi Khusbu JV Company secured the contract for Rs. 190 million and the agreement was signed on July 10, 2019, with a deadline of two years for completion.

At the time, the project’s Detailed Project Report (DPR) was prepared, most roads in Letang were earthen or gravel. After the establishment of local government in 2017, roads were blacktopped with public participation. When representatives of the Federal Drinking Water Project and the construction company arrived at Letang Municipality with the contract approval letter, the roads had already been paved.

On November 4, 2019, a meeting was held under the chairmanship of former Mayor Shankar Rai to discuss creating a conducive environment for project implementation. During the discussion, locals expressed concerns that large projects often damage existing roads, water supply, and electricity infrastructure and leave them unrepaired. They requested that the sewage system be constructed without damaging existing structures.

According to Surat Lal Chaudhary, Chief Division Engineer at the Federal Drinking Water Project Office in Biratnagar, the company was supposed to complete the work and hand over the project by October 10, 2021. However, even after six years, the project remains incomplete. He said that when the DPR was prepared, the roads were gravel, but by the time construction began, they had been blacktopped. This made it difficult to dig and lay pipes, especially since the roads were built with community investment. Additionally, work had started without obtaining proper approval from the Forest Office, which delayed the project by a year due to legal procedures. He also stated that delays in government payments to the contractor contributed to the slow progress.

On one hand, government agencies failed to coordinate to clear the project site and on the other, it could not provide timely payments. Chaudhary stated that various legal and technical complications, such as the need for a new variation order (VO) to reconstruct damaged infrastructure, prevented timely completion. According to him, a total of 9,424 metres of pipeline was required to carry sewage from every household in the market area to the dumping site, and the pipe-laying work has now been completed. As per local demands, damaged areas have been restored using asphalt technology. While the initial contract has been completed, an additional Rs. 40 million is still required to fully operate the sewage treatment plant.

He further added that a new contract worth Rs. 25 million has recently been awarded to lay pipes in areas without blacktopped roads. Since most roads in the municipality are already paved, a new DPR has been prepared, including the costs of breaking and reconstructing them, and submitted to the Ministry of Finance for resource allocation. If funding is secured, the project will be completed; otherwise, it will remain unfinished. He emphasised that work had stalled due to a lack of funds.

Letang Municipality Mayor Bhupendra Kumar Lawati stated that delays in completing such projects were having long-term negative impacts on the municipality’s development. He added that some federal projects were introduced without proper consultation with local governments, which also contributes to delays. He stated that the municipality has reached a point where it must consider withdrawing from projects if adequate funding cannot be secured.