Monday, September 23, 2013

Kathmandu-Kulekhani- Hetauda Tunnel Highway construction to start from November 11



Nepal Purwadhar Bikash Company (Nepal Infrastructure Development Company) has decided to start the construction of Kathmandu-Kulekhani- Hetauda Tunnel Highway from November 11.
During the annual general meeting here today, chairman of Nepal Purwadhar Bikash Company Kush Kumar Joshi said that the company will start the 58-km tunnel road construction from November 11.
The AGM of the company that was established to construct big infrastructure projects like tunnel roads, has also planned to simplify the process to include more interested individual investors and institutional investors in the tunnel road that is expected to not only shorten the distance between Hetauda and Kathmandu but also save fuel consumption.
The company is however, yet to complete environment impact assessment (EIA) study – that is mandatory – of the project.
The Environment Protection Act 1997 has made it mandatory for developers of large scale project to complete EIA study – that will assess the possible impacts of the project on environment, social and economic aspects in the project sites and devise measures to mitigate such impacts – before the ground-breaking.
The Rs 34.5 billion ambitious tunnel highway that links Kathmandu with Tarai reducing the distance to 58-km has received the permission to begin EIA study with approved Terms of Reference and scoping document in January from the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment.
The proposed tunnel highway that has three tunnels – with the longest one of 3.4- km long – and 15 bridges, is the first of its kind of infrastructure that is being financed and constructed by the public.



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