KATHMANDU, Jan 13: The government is racing against time to finish the new parliament building within the Singha Durbar complex, aiming to host the first session of the House of Representatives (HoR) formed after the upcoming elections on March 5 in the new facility.
Rabindra Bohara, Director General of the Department of Urban Development and Building Construction (DoUDBC), said the building’s construction is expected to be completed by mid-March. “If everything goes as planned, the new HoR session after the March 5 elections will be held in the new parliament building,” he said.
The contractor is reportedly working around the clock, with 375 to 380 workers on site daily, to meet the deadline. “We are pushing the contractor to finish as quickly as possible. Night shifts are ongoing to ensure the project wraps up by mid-March,” Bohara added.
Will new parliament building be ready before March 5?
Currently, about 87 percent of the construction is complete. A senior official at the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) said, “Even if the building isn’t 100 percent finished, our priority is to have the main hall ready for parliamentary sessions. The remaining work can continue alongside operations.”
Meanwhile, the National Assembly meeting scheduled for January 18 will take place in the hall of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee within Singha Durbar, as the new parliament building is not yet ready. Once completed, both the HoR and National Assembly sessions will be held in the new building.
A few days ago, then MoUD Minister Kulman Ghising conducted an emergency inspection and instructed that the building be completed by March 5, even if work continues in two shifts. Bohara said finishing touches such as interior decoration, security systems, and lighting, are in progress. “We have no other option. The hall must be ready by mid-March. Parliament sessions cannot be delayed,” he emphasized.
The Secretariat of Parliament has already canceled its rental agreement with the Birendra International Convention Center (BICC), which had been used for parliamentary sessions since 2064 BS. The center was rendered unusable following a fire during the Gen-Z movement on September 9, making the new building essential for the upcoming session.
Construction of the new parliament building has faced repeated delays. The MoUD had extended the contractor’s deadline five times as of June 26, creating headaches for senior officials trying to meet the year-end target. Promises by ministers and former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal to have the building ready within a year have also gone unfulfilled. The project, which began six years ago, remains incomplete.
The foundation stone was laid by former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on September 18, 2018. In February 2024, following approval of a Variation Order (VO), an additional Rs 560 million was allocated to complete the construction. A senior MoUD official pointed to lax monitoring of the contractor, insufficient DPR studies, inadequate risk assessments, and repeated design changes as reasons for the delays.
With just weeks to go, all eyes are now on the finishing touches as the government pushes to finally see the long-awaited new parliament building ready to host Nepal’s lawmakers.
