Even in two years, 25 kilometers of road could not be built

The construction of 25 km road has not been completed in two years due to a dispute between the government and the contractor company. Swachchhand-Pappu-United Builders JV Construction Company had won the contract in 2075 BS for the construction of the main road under Birgunj Metropolitan City of Parsa. However, the work has been delayed due to non-clearance of the site by the government. The company has alleged that the road construction in Birgunj has not gained momentum due to the negligence of the Intensive Urban and Building Construction Office, Parsa. 

According to Section 6 (3) of the Procurement Act of the Government of Nepal, the contracting body has to clear at least 90 percent of the site before awarding the contract, but the company plans to complete the construction work on time as the office has cleared only 12 km of site and removed the remaining 15 km. Coordinator Sushil Thakur said. 

Sadre Alam, an engineer at the Intensive Urban and Building Construction Office, Parsa, said the company had made excuses. "It's all an excuse, it's been two years since the contract was signed," he said. The deadline has expired but not even 25 percent of the work has been done so far. Work has been delayed on the pretext of not clearing the site.

 Stating that there is not even one kilometer left to clear the site, he said that an initiative is being taken to clear it. 'You have to work in a clear place. But without doing that, various excuses have been made ', he said. 

However, the construction company has already completed the construction of drains and gravel on the 12-kilometer road where the site was cleared, adding that it is 45 percent of the total work. The company was tasked to build 17 roads connecting the wards of the metropolis in different wards of the metropolis. Thakur, the company's planning coordinator, said, "Hundreds of electricity poles have not been removed. In many places, houses will have to be demolished. In many places, landlords have blocked the high court. Now how do we work in such a situation? The work should be completed within that period. '

The company has complained that the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) Birgunj Distribution Center has requested the Urban and Building Construction Office to deposit Rs. 
The company has accused the government of not even paying the last bill submitted by the construction businessman. Thakur has alleged that Ranjan Das, the chief of the office, withheld the payment of Rs 40 million submitted by the construction businessman to the office after completing the work till July. However, Engineer Alam said that some of the bills issued by the company were faulty and were not paid as per the bills. 

The contract taken on Jestha 9, 2075 has expired on Jestha 9, 2077. Meanwhile, after the company applied for an extension of one year, its file has moved forward.