Bhutwal-Gorusinghe Road Expansion Project Faces Delays

Butwal. Signs indicate that the Butwal-Gorusinghe road expansion project under the East-West Highway will be difficult to complete within the stipulated time. The contract was signed with the construction company in Kartik 2081, with a completion deadline of three years. The project was inaugurated on Magh 10, 2081. According to the contract, construction should be completed by Kartik 2084. However, with approximately 60 percent of the contract period elapsed, the physical progress of the project is limited to 28 percent. With only about 14 months remaining for completion, there are doubts about finishing the work within the specified time based on the current progress. Engineer Ashok Poudel, Information Officer for the Butwal-Gorusinghe Road Expansion Project, told Ratopati that although construction is underway, it appears difficult to complete the work within the stipulated time due to a lack of coordination between time and physical progress. 'Work is ongoing, but looking at the time and physical progress, it seems difficult to complete the construction by the specified date,' he said, 'Now, the construction companies will have to significantly increase the pace of work compared to the past.' The Chinese construction company Shaanxi Construction Engineering Group Corporation and Chitwan's Ashish Nirman Sewa JV have taken the contract for 13.5595 billion rupees and are carrying out the road expansion work. Out of the total 69 kilometers of the Butwal-Chandrauta road section, construction is currently underway in approximately 50 kilometers up to Gorusinghe. Preparations are also being made to advance the expansion process for the remaining 19 kilometers of the road. The construction of the 50-kilometer road under construction is being divided into two parts. The project has stated that construction is underway in 25-kilometer sections on the Rupandehi and Kapilvastu sides. According to Project Information Officer Poudel, the physical progress of the Rupandehi section has reached 28 percent and financial progress is around 23 percent. Currently, construction work is being carried out with the deployment of 450 to 500 laborers daily. When construction began, approximately 900 laborers were deployed, but in the interim, due to a shortage of fuel and other construction materials and increased costs, the number of laborers was reduced to 150 to 200. The project has stated that construction companies reduced workers to control costs following an increase in international fuel prices due to the ongoing conflict in West Asia. Now, the number of laborers has been increased again to advance the construction work. Poudel stated that the construction companies are preparing to increase the pace of work by deploying more laborers once the monsoon season ends. The project has stated that efforts are being made to speed up construction in the remaining period and complete the work within the stipulated time.

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