France may help prepare DPR for urban cable car

The French government has expressed willingness to help prepare detailed project report (DPR) for urban cable car service in Kathmandu Valley. According to sources, the French government decided to provide assistance to prepare DPR responding to a request made by the government. The French government has also sought detailed information about the project from Nepal. “We had sent a letter to the French government a few months ago, asking it whether it would assist us in preparation of DPR for urban cable car project,” Tulsi Prasad Sitaula, secretary at the Ministry of Physical, Infrastructure and Transport (MoPIT), said. “We approached the French government after Kathmandu Urban Air Tramp - a Nepali firm that has applied for permission to build urban cable car service - told us that French companies are interested to prepare DPR.” According to Sitaula, the French government sought information such as who is behind the project and how it is being implemented, among others, from the MoPIT a month ago. “We are preparing to send detailed information about the project to the French government within a week,” Sitaula said, adding, “Once we send the reply, the French government will send a team of experts and consultants to study the technical, commercial and financial aspects of the project.” Once the DPR is ready, Kathmandu Urban Air Tramp with the brand name B&S Urban Cable Car will initiate the construction works on the proposed project. Entrepreneurs Bhawani Rana and Shyam Mohan Shrestha are the promoters of the firm. “The company has already conducted a preliminary study for operating cable cars from Narayan Gopal Chowk to Lagankhel and from Kuleshwar to Bouddha, with stops at different places,” said Rana. According to the preliminary, it will take 15 to 20 minutes on cable car to cover a distance that normally takes an hour. Around 200,000 passengers can travel on both the routes every day. The project is estimated to cost around Rs 14 billion at the current market price. When the project completes in four years, the company estimates the cost will climb to Rs 15-20 billion. If the project gets green signal from the government, it will take two years for the company to start construction and another two years to complete the proposed project. “If everything goes as per our plan, we will be able to bring the cable cars into operation in four years,” Shrestha said