KATHMANDU, May 11: Contractors have urged the government to extend the deadline of the project construction period by additional one year, citing disruption in construction works due to ongoing prohibitory orders imposed by the government to contain the second wave of the COVID-19.

A delegation of the Federation of Contractors’ Associations of Nepal (FCAN) led by the federation’s Senior Vice-president Nicholas Pandey apprised the government agencies concerned of the woes the construction sector is facing. In a separate meeting with Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Basanta Kumar Nembang and Minister for Urban Development Prabhu Sah, the construction entrepreneurs briefed the impacts of ongoing threat of coronavirus on the construction business.

According to the FCAN, currently the project construction work has been affected by the short supply of the construction materials as a result of restrictions placed in vehicular movement and closure of the outlets of the suppliers concerned. In many project sites, local people have also been obstructing transport of construction materials citing the threat of spreading coronavirus. Similarly, many workers have also been infected by the COVID-19 pandemic, causing acute shortage of manpower.

The FCAN has urged the government to consider ‘construction holiday’ during the period between mid-March and mid-November to provide the contractors with necessary relief measures.   

 
• construction
 
• prohibitory_orders
 
• COVID-19