Five-year delay halts construction of two motorable concrete bridges in Kailali

Kailali: Construction of two motorable concrete bridges in Gauriganga Municipality of Kailali has remained stalled for the past five years.

The bridges, initiated under the budget of the Sudurpaschim Provincial Government, have not progressed due to negligence on the part of the contractor company. The stalled projects include a motorable concrete bridge over the Kataini River connecting Gauriganga Municipality wards 5 and 8 in Baluwatar, and another over the Chaumala River connecting wards 1 and 2.

On Asad 31, 2077 BS, the Infrastructure Development Office signed an agreement with YP Construction, Kathmandu, to complete the construction of the two bridges within three years. The contract was signed at a cost of Rs 50.28 million for the Kataini River bridge and Rs 72.38 million for the Chaumala River bridge.

According to the Infrastructure Development Office, the contractor company has so far received Rs 30.84 million for the Kataini bridge and Rs 20.59 million for the Chaumala bridge. Despite the stipulated completion period of three years, construction has not advanced even after five years, with the contractor repeatedly seeking deadline extensions.

Infrastructure Development Office engineer Suryaprakash Joshi said that the deadline for the Kataini Khola bridge has been extended until Mangsir 2082 BS and for the Chaumala bridge until Asar 2083 BS, yet construction has not gained momentum. He added that the contractor applied for a deadline extension after the Kataini Khola bridge deadline expired in Mangsir.

Local resident Sagar Thapa said that the lack of completed bridges has caused serious difficulties for locals, especially during the rainy season, when crossing the rivers becomes hazardous. He said residents are compelled to construct temporary wooden bridges and travel at their own risk when water levels rise.

Thapa further said that if the bridges remain incomplete, service recipients are forced to use an alternative route of three kilometers to reach the municipality during the monsoon. Locals have demanded that the contractor company responsible for abandoning the bridges due to negligence be blacklisted and that action be taken against both the provincial government and the construction company.