KATHMANDU, Dec 21: Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) Prabhu Ram Sharma has stated that the construction of the Kathmandu-Terai Fast Track is facing delays due to legal and other obstacles. According to him, “the Nepal Army did not request for the construction of the fast track but was assigned the project by the government.”

On Wednesday, the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the Federal Parliament held discussions with CoAS Sharma to address inquiries regarding the Kathmandu-Terai Fast Track Project and the construction of the Khalanga-Tinkar road by the Nepal Army (NA) in Darchula.

“The Nepali Army does not engage in wrongdoing. The budget has been presented transparently. I acknowledge that there may have been some mistakes, human errors. If there is a mistake, it should be corrected, but there should be no financial irregularities,” Sharma said.

Responding to questions about the slow progress of the fast track construction, Army Chief Sharma cited challenges such as Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) issues. "The Nepali Army never requested for the fast track project; it was assigned by the government. We were willing to accept it, but the construction has faced challenges. It took nine months to cut down four trees," he explained.

Sharma expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that the trees identified by the Ministry of Forest since May have not yet been removed.

The Commander-in-Chief highlighted the absence of legal restructuring according to the work, pointing out that the rules date back to 2017 BS. He emphasized that without proper rules, the project would not be completed even by 2083 BS.

Sharma asserted that maintaining current environmental laws would hinder other developments, emphasizing that the laws were not designed with a focus on development. However, he stated that construction work has progressed to enable the army to reach Nijgarh from Kathmandu by car in 2083 BS.

During the discussion, parliamentarians questioned the efficiency of the Nepal Army, expressing concerns about the slow progress of the fast track construction. Gagan Kumar Thapa, a Nepali Congress MP and General Secretary, raised concerns about the delay in the procurement process for the fast track construction package.

Thapa urged the government to make decisions through the Council of Ministers to resolve disputes and ensure the timely completion of the fast track. The estimated Rs 211.93 billion project, initially slated for completion in 2081 BS, has been granted an extension until Chaitra 2083 BS. However, due to delays in signing contracts for six packages, completion within the extended timeline appears unlikely.

The expressway requires the construction of 89 bridges, with contracts worth Rs 106.79 billion signed so far. While contracts for five of the remaining six packages are in progress, the procurement process for one package in the Khokana section has not advanced.

 
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