Friday, July 12, 2019

Construction of Thankot-Naubise tunnel road to begin in October

The contract agreement for the construction of the Thankot-Naubise will be signed next month as the government is planning to start the construction from October.
According to the Department of Roads (DoR), the government has accepted the financial and technical proposal of Hajma and Ando JV – a Japanese construction company – for the construction of the tunnel way, connecting Basnet Chhap near Nepal Oil Corporation's (NOC) depot at Thankot and Sisne Khola of Naubise.
“We are now waiting for the agreement paper from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA),” the department said, adding that the agreement between the government and the construction company will be signed after it gets the agreement paper from JICA that has prepared the design of the tunnel way. JICA has publicised the 3D visual design of the tunnel way that will have three lanes, two lanes for vehicular movement and the remaining one to keep vehicles needing maintenance.
Though, the government has set the target to complete and bring the 2.35-km-long tunnel way into operation by 2022, there has been delay from the government side and also the development partner.
Currently, it takes more than two hours to travel from Naubise of Dhading to Nagdhunga of Kathmandu. But with the construction of the tunnel way, the distance can be travelled within seven minutes saving not only time but also money and fuel, with smooth traffic in and out of the Kathmandu valley.
The tunnel way will be connected to the Tribhuvan Highway with a 2.25-km-long access road.
Though the investment is huge, it is cost effective in the long run as Nepal and Japan governments have already signed an agreement regarding the construction of the tunnel way.
The Japanese government has agreed to lend loans at 0.01 per cent interest rate to Nepal for the construction of the tunnel way, according to the department.
The government has allocated Rs 6.27 billion for the next fiscal year to construct the Thankot-Naubise tunnel. As the department had asked for bid for construction of Thankot-Naubise tunnel, it received bids from five companies. Hajma and Ando JV, the Japanese firm, has won the bid at a price Rs 700 million lower than the government estimate. The government has estimated the project to cost Rs 16 billion. The tunnel way – of which detailed project report (DPR) has already been finalized – will affect 267 ropani of land. The government will provide some 33 ropani of land.