KATHMANDU, Aug 16: Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Raghuveer Mahaseth, has said the potholes and ditches on the roads in Kathmandu would be filled and the roads repaired within the 28th of this month. 

Minister Mahaseth said this replying to a lawmaker's query during the meeting of the Development and Technology Committee under the Federal Parliament today. 

He also informed the committee that a decision would be taken promptly regarding which of the roads would be repaired, maintained and operated by the local level, province level and the federal level. 

Stating that the government has the goal of connecting all the municipalities and rural municipalities by road within the next five years, he said a policy decision has been made to carry ahead the construction of the Kalanki-Nagdhunga road and the Chabahil-Sankhu road on the basis of available space. 

"The government has already filed an application at the Office of the Attorney General to review the Supreme Court's order especially in connection to the expansion of these two roads," he said, adding that the expansion works of these roads had been halted for a month from June 15 to July 16. 

Modern equipment to measure road quality 

The Physical Infrastructure and Transport Minister also said on the occasion that the Ministry would bring into use a modern equipment to measure the quality of the road construction. 

The Ministry is planning to purchase this appliance and use it by the end of the current fiscal year to address the complaints that the newly asphalted roads were peeling off. 
The total length of the roads under the Department of Roads is 14,000. 

Lawmakers Bahadur Singh Lama, Yagya Raj Sunuwar, Ganesh Pahadi, Asha Kumari BK and Ranga Kumari Shahi had expressed their views and asked questions regarding the bad shape of most of the roads in the country, haphazard construction of roads and infrastructures, delay in road construction and the problem of sub-standard constructions as well as the irregularities and mismanagement in the road construction projects. 

Ministry secretary Madhu Sudan Adhikari said the Ministry has forwarded various works regarding the proposed Kerung-Kathmandu railway and the Raxaul-Kathmandu railway. 
Director general of the Department of Roads, Rabindra Nath Shrestha, claimed that the face of the roads in Kathmandu would change by September 16. RSS