Stakeholders complain that the bus park construction which was initiated by locals is in a limbo as the construction never became a priority of the government.
Ek Narayan Giri, president of Kusma Bus Park Construction Committee formed by the locals, said the government has again failed to allocate necessary fund for the bus park construction in the budget. “In the five years duration, the government changed frequently but not a single government allocated budget for the bus park construction. As a result, the bus park still remains incomplete,” he lamented. [break]
As there is high traffic congestion at Kusma in Parbat district in comparison to other districts of Dhaulagiri zone, residents of Kusma took the lead for the bus park project at an estimated cost of Rs. 15.9 million in 2008. But the committee is still struggling to manage fund for the construction.
Giri complained that apart from Rs 1.9 million released by the Prabat District Development Committee and Rs. 100,000 granted by Siwalaya VDC, they have not received a penny from the state.
“We are yet to complete almost 85 percent of the construction work, but where is the money?” he complained.
Members of the committee said that though they have been requesting the government for the last three years to allocate budget for the bus park, the government continues to turn a deaf ear.
In absence of a bus park in Kusma, vehicles are parked haphazardly along the roadside. And it has increased a risk of accidents, according to the District Traffic Police Office (DTPO).
“Most of the vehicles are parked on the road. As a result, many highways including Pokhara-Baglung highway have become narrower, and vulnerable to road accident,” said Bikash Timalsina, chief of the DTPO.
Over 500 hundred vehicles leave Kusma every day for various destinations, including Kathmandu, Baglung, Pokhara, Bhairawa and Sunauli. “Of the total vehicles, over 300 vehicles could be seen parked along the roadside each day. We urgently need to complete the bus park ,” said Timalsina.
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