Kathmandu Valley Development Authority (KVDA) Thursday resumed the marking of illegally built structures for demolition, to upgrade the Tripureshwor-Kalanki road to six lanes and the Kalanki-Nagdhunga section to four lanes. KVDA is responsible for clearing illegally built structures along the roads to pave the way for road expansion work.In the first week of April, KVDA had started marking off buildings that encroached on the road from Tripureshwor to Nagdhunga, to widen the section to 22 meters. The road section is one of the busiest in the Valley. But following the devastating earthquake, the marking stopped completely.
"But from Thursday, we resumed the marking of illegal structures. Currently, our team is marking illegal buildings along the Soltimode-Naikap stretch of the Tripureshwor to Nagdhunga section," said Bhai Kaji Tiwari, commissioner of KVDA for Kathmandu district.
Tiwari said all structures within 11 meters on either side of the road will be demolished. "I urge all house owners to cooperate with the authorities and demolish their illegal buildings on time. Or else the government will be compelled to take harsh measures to clear the road," he warned.
He said that house owners have been given one and a half months' notice to demolish the illegal structures and clear the road for construction work. "We will complete marking the illegal structures within the next 10 days," he added.
Currently, the Tripureshwor-Kalanki road is 12m wide with with 2m wide footpaths on either side. But after the expansion, the road section will be 18m wide, besides the 2m footpaths. Similarly, the two-lane road from Kalanki to Nagdhunga is currently 7m wide and there is no footpath.
"We have decided to expand the road section to 22 meters. The road will have sidewalks on both sides. There will be a 2-m green belt down the middle of the road," said Prabhat Jha, chief of the Kathmandu Valley Road Improvement Project (KVRIP) at the Department of Roads (DoR).
Jha said that the authorities have already initiated the procurement process to initiate road construction work along that section. "We will start construction work along the road from next fiscal year and we aim to complete it in the next three years," he added.
He also informed that KVDA is all set to start marking illegal structures along the Chabahil to Sakhu road section within this fiscal year, to expand the road to 22 meters.
Since the road expansion work started in the Valley in December 2011 under the Baburam Bhattarai government, around 180 kilometers of road has been expanded. The government aims to expand an additional 120 kilometers within the next three years.
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