Construction of five bridges on postal highway delayed due to budget shortages

Dhangadhi: The construction of five bridges under the Postal Road Project has been delayed due to a lack of budget, according to the Postal Road Project Office.

Two bridges in Dhangadhi have not been completed within the stipulated timeframe. Although the completion deadline was extended by two years, only 65 percent of the physical work has been achieved.

An agreement was signed with Malika Nirman Sewa Pvt. Ltd. on February 19, 2078, for the construction of two 25-meter-long bridges over the river connecting Dhangadhi Sub-metropolitan City-1 and 2 and Ward Nos. 1 and 8, to be completed in 30 months. The project office stated that the construction company initially caused delays, and in recent years, lack of budget has further hampered progress.

Similarly, Shanti Nirman Sewa Pvt. Ltd. signed a contract on 2079 Ashad 5 to build a bridge over the Dongda River in Punarbas Municipality, Kanchanpur, for Rs. 335.533 million, with a completion deadline of 2082 Poush. However, only two pillars of the bridge have been installed in three years, and just 30 percent of the physical work has been completed.

An RCC box culvert on the TCN River in the Belauri-Daiji section of Kanchanpur, contracted to Malika Nirman Sewa on 2080 Baisakh 17 for Rs. 31.1269 million, has reached 90 percent completion. Another RCC box culvert on the Amkhoiya River, contracted to Neeraj Bhauneli Shreyaz JV on 2080 Shrawan 1 for Rs. 32.76 million, has completed 70 percent of the work; the initial contract period ended on 2081 Ashoj 30.

Ramesh Pant, an engineer at the project office in Dhangadhi, noted that the extended deadlines for these under-construction bridges have also expired, highlighting the ongoing delays due to budget constraints.