KATHMANDU, JULY 19: The construction of the Dharahara has been halted due to underground utility pipes of telecom and drinking water present at its construction sites. It is said that at least 16 such utility pipes are laid under the construction site of the view tower complex.
On the Khichapokhari side of Dharahara, 16 pipes of telecom internet and phone wires were found, which has led to problems in the construction of structures including the Central Utilities Building in Dharahara. Sanjay Nakarmi, project manager of Dharahara's construction company GIETC-Raman J/V, said that the construction work of the utility building in the Dharahara complex was affected when Nepal Telecom did not remove the telephone and internet utility wires on time.
“Since Nepal Telecom did not remove the pipes which also had wires in them, we have not been able to prepare the essential infrastructure such as AC, fire hydrant, wiring, etc. of the central unit building that is connected to the tower,” He said, “We have repeatedly requested the Department of Urban Development and Building Construction to remove the necessary structures of telecom, but so far this problem has not been resolved.”
The Dharahara Debate
Project Manager Nakarmi said that the pipes had important wires for telecom and internet; hence, could not be removed immediately. “Telephone and internet lines have been extended to places like New Road, Balkhu, and Asan through the underground pipes of Dharahara complex,” he said, “We are also not able to work as we cut the essential telephone and internet lines while digging. Therefore, it would have been much easier to work if the relevant body understood and removed it.” So far, the overall physical progress of Dharahara has reached 81 percent.
According to the construction company, there has been a financial growth of Rs 2.12 billion or 66 percent in the project so far. The project was contracted for Rs 3.8 billion. Former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli hastily inaugurated the Dharahara on 24 April 2021 when the necessary infrastructure around the tower was still under construction. Until now, the deadline for Dharahara has been extended for the fourth time. The deadline for the main structure of Dharahara has been fixed for the middle of October. Likewise, a deadline until the end of next month has been set for the construction of infrastructure in the former Taksar area. The construction company GIETC-Raman J/V said that if the problems seen in the Dharahara complex are not resolved, the entire infrastructure construction work of Dharahara will not be completed within the current deadline.
The contract for the construction of Dharahara was signed on 30 September 2018. According to the contract, the construction of the Dharahara should have been completed within two years, but the Dharahara deadline has been extended four times so far. There is still doubt if the construction of the tower will be completed within recent the deadline. Nakarmi, the project manager of the construction company, said that due to the problems seen in the construction of the Dharahara complex, the construction of other structures near the complex such as gardens, museums, colorful water fountains, exhibitions, and souvenir shops have also not been completed yet. Although the tower which is under construction appears to be 11 floors from the outside, the inside of the tower will have 22 floors.
With the collapse of the tower due to the earthquake of 2015, the government has been building it with modern construction materials. Project Manager Nakarmi said that the government agency has not yet provided an official plan on how to manage the old ruins of the tower that were destroyed by the earthquake. "It has not yet been decided how to manage the ruins of the earthquake-damaged tower," he said, “At first, it was planned to keep it in a glass frame, but now there have been different opinions around it.”
Prime Minister Bhimsen Thapa built this tower for Queen Tripura Sundari Devi in the year B.S 1888, but unfortunately, two major earthquakes destroyed the temple structure both times. The earthquake of B.S 1990 first destroyed the 11-story tower. The then Prime Minister Juddha Shumsher Rana ordered the reconstruction of the Dharahara asserting that it was of historical importance. Due to the high risk of earthquakes in the country, Juddha Shumsher reduced the height of the tower from 11-storeys to 9 storeys. Juddha Shumsher reduced two floors of the tower but could not strengthen the structure. Due to this, the earthquake of 25 April 2015 completely destroyed the structure of Dharahara. At that time, more than 50 civilians who were climbing the tower died.
