Defense and Transport Ministers inspect Darchula-Tinker road

Darchula: Two federal ministers—Defense Minister Manbir Rai and Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Devendra Dahal—visited Darchula to inspect the ongoing construction of the Darchula-Tinker road under the national pride project, Mahakali Corridor. The Nepali Army is tasked with constructing this strategically important road.

Accompanied by House of Representatives member and former minister Dilendra Prasad Badu, as well as Chief of Army Staff General Ashok Raj Sigdel, the team visited Chhangru in Byas Rural Municipality-1 on Wednesday. They arrived in a Nepali Army helicopter and conducted discussions with local residents in Chhangru. Following the site visit, the team held a briefing at the Nepali Army camp in Sunesara before returning to Kathmandu the same day, according to Chief District Officer Yagyaraj Joshi.

The inspection follows the Prime Minister's concerns over the slow progress on the Darchula-Tinker road, a project of immense strategic and national significance. Despite its importance, locals have criticized the sluggish pace of construction, attributing delays to inadequate annual budget allocations.

Construction of the Darchula-Tinker road began on Magh 28, 2077 BS. Out of the planned 79 km Tusarpani-Tinker track, only 13.59 km have been opened by the army so far. In the current fiscal year, the government allocated a budget of Rs 9 crore, which the army plans to use to open 1.8 km of new track and upgrade 1.2 km of the existing road.

Stretching 425 km from Brahmadev in Kanchanpur to Tinkar in Darchula, the road includes a challenging section that the Department of Roads handed over to the Nepali Army for construction. This section is expected to be completed by the fiscal year 2088/89 BS.

Without this road, locals must rely on the Indian route to travel between the district headquarters in Darchula and remote areas like Chhangru, Tinkar, and Kalapani. Ward Chairman Ashok Singh Bohara of Byas Rural Municipality-1 highlighted the difficulties faced by locals, who are forced to migrate or transport livestock through India due to the steep and hazardous terrain on the Nepalese side. Bohara and other residents urged the ministers to prioritize constructing a safe and accessible road within Nepal.