Contractor, who received an advance of over Rs 66 million for electrification in Rolpa, has been out of contact for 25 months

Published On: February 10, 2023 02:10 PM NPT By: Dinesh Subedi

ROLPA, Feb 9: A company that has not completed any work for 25 months after being awarded a contract in Rolpa has gone missing after receiving an advance of Rs 66.6326. Tripureshwari-Vibhanshu JV, based in Kathmandu, had signed a contract on December 15, 2020 to electrify various locations in the district for a total cost of Rs 376.447 million, to be completed within 18 months. Despite this, the contractor reportedly asked locals to donate labor, which was not part of the original contract.

People complain that the contractor has not done any work as per the contract after taking an advance amount of more than Rs 66 million from the project and has gone contactless. Dipendra Kumar Pun, a Member of Parliament (MP) of Lumbini Province, has also made a long complaint about this contract on social media. "According to the call for contracts by Nepal Electricity Authority Distribution Center Rolpa, two contracts of Tripureshwari-Vibhanshu JV Kathmandu were approved for an amount equal to Rs 376.447 million and it was agreed that the work would start from December 2020 and be completed by June 2022. But by the end of 25 months, no work has been done after taking the advance amount of Rs 66.6326 million.

MP Pun complained on Facebook and wrote, "Even when the Rolpa distribution center made repeated oral and written requests, there was no response from the contractor, and a three-point agreement was reached on 19th august 2021 in the Lumbini Division Office Chief's initiative, but nothing was achieved. On June 7, 2022, I informed Kulman Ghising, the executive director of the NEA, that there was a letter to the Divisional Office of Lumbini to terminate the purchase agreement. But so far no result has come.”

Also, even after three years of the opening of Lakuri sub-station here, due to the lack of charging, lights have not turned on in East Rolpa, especially in the rural areas. MP Pun complains, "First, the inability of the contractor to work was a weakness, but now the inability to cancel and sign another contract is being seen as a second weakness."

The office has neither been able to get the work done nor taken any action amid constant pressure from even the elected MPs. Shambhu Prasad Mandal, head of NEA, Rolpa, says that the authority to take action against the contractor lies with a higher body. “We have contacted and corresponded with the contractor company many times. We have held meetings at the initiative of higher bodies several times, but the progress is zero.”