Ministry Upbeat about Mega Projects


The Ministry of Physical Planning and Works (MoPPW) is quite upbeat about the mega infrastructure projects including metro train in Kathmandu, Kathmandu-Pokhara electric rail and Kathmandu-Hetauda tunnel highway. The progress on these dream projects is satisfactory, according to (MoPPW) officials.

The dream of Metro trains plying in the capital city of Kathmandu doesn’t seem to be too distant now. According to Tulsi Prasad Sitaula, Secretary at (MoPPW), the contractor selection process for the feasibility study of the project is underway. “We will select the contractor within December. The study will take around a year to complete. If the report says it is feasible, we will go into the construction process,” said Sitaula.


Also, the much talked about Kathmandu-Pokhara electric rail also has the chances of being constructed, in a bit distant future. According to the study carried out by two Indian companies, the project will cost Rs 300 billion. The study also showed that people travel more from Kathmandu to Pokhara and vice versa, rather than the transportation of goods. “This is a very big amount for a project, almost the size of our yearly budget. So this is not a recent probability, but still, if transportation of higher economic value occurs through this road in the future, there are chances of it materializing,” said Sitaula.


The Kathmandu-Hetauda tunnel highway is slowly picking up its pace as well. The government is ready to start the construction of the 3 km long tunnel in near future. The tunnel starts from Kulekhani passing through Bhimfedi and finally ends at Hetauda. According to Sitaula, the preliminary study of the tunnel has been completed. According to the study, the construction of the cost is Rs 1 billion per km. If everything goes well, the tunnel will take 3 years to complete.


Along with the construction of the tunnel, the government is also going to repair the 40 km long road from Bhimfedi to Hetauda which was in existence since the time of the Ranas. The repairing of this road will cost almost half billion rupees. According to Sitaula, the renovation of the road will go side by side with the construction of the tunnel.


The country will soon witness the construction of five six-lane roads of economic and strategic importance. The construction of Bhairahawa-Butwal road and 40 km long Biratnagar-Dharan road will start this year. 20 km long Nepalgujnj- Patlaiya road and 22 km long Birgunj-Patlaiya road will begin their construction next year. Similarly, the 16 km long Bhaktapur-Dhulihel road, the expansion of the current Tinkune-Suryabinayak 6- lane road, will be constructed after two years. The roads are selected according to the vehicle density and their economic importance.


This year, the government has allocated Rs 600 million for the construction of these roads, informed Sitaula. “The construction of these roads will be very supportive to the economy as the travelling time will be greatly reduced, thus reducing the consumption of fuel and other resources. The volume of trade will also increase and will be beneficial to the country,” said Sitaula.