The laying of foundation stone marks the formal start of the construction of the country's second international airport. On the occasion, Oli said that everyone should join hands to complete the project on time."Construction of the airport in Pokhara will be a milestone for country's development as it directly impacts economic activities and country's tourism," Oli said, adding, "We all should be careful that the construction is completed on time."
Oli also said that the government is committed to accelerating work at various other national pride projects.
On the occasion, UCPN (Maoist) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal said that there is need for national unity for expediting development activities. Informing that development of various other pending and proposed projects should also be carried out with priority, Dahal said, "Once the construction of the regional international airport in Pokhara is completed, the city will stimulate other development activities across the country."
If everything goes as planned, the construction of Pokhara Regional International Airport will be completed within four years, thereby paving the way for the development of western Nepal and the entire country.
Chinese contractor, China CMC Engineering, is the contractor of the airport project. The project is being developed under EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) model, which means there will not be any modification in contractual provisions. The airport will support landing and take-offs of aircraft as big as Boeing 757 and Airbus A320. The government had already acquired the land required the project and the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Report has already been approved by the Ministry of Environment (MoE). Ananda Raj Mulmi, former president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCC), said that the government should now expedite work at the project site.
Nepal had signed a soft loan agreement with China on March 21. Out of the project's total estimated cost of Rs 21.47 billion, Nepal has signed a loan agreement for Rs 16.87 billion with China Exim Bank at 1.5 percent average interest rate. Exim bank, however, will not charge any interest on the remaining Rs 5.87 billion.
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