Old plan to build ring road in Pokhara being revived

The Department of Roads is at the final stages of selecting a consultant and signing an agreement to prepare a detailed project report for the proposed 70.5-km road AN old government plan to build a ring road around Pokhara has been dusted off and given a new lease of life. The Department of Roads is at the final stages of selecting a consultant and signing an agreement to prepare a detailed project report (DPR) for the proposed 70.5-km road. Last week, the Roads Department issued a letter of intent to Silt and Card Consultants JV to do a detailed engineering survey, design and DPR. Earlier, the government had planned to build a 77- km road encircling Pokhara, nine surrounding village development committees and parts of Lekhnath Municipality. The project was shelved after completing a feasibility study due to lack of cash. The ring road is estimated to cost more than Rs 1 billion. As per the department, the design and price tag will be known after the detailed study which is scheduled to be completed within six months. “The ring road project is not included in the government’s programmes, and no money has been set aside to build it,” said Madhav Karki, deputy director general of the Roads Department. He added that they had decided to build the road with money saved from other projects considering its importance in the tourist city. The National Planning Commission and Roads Department have pushed the project to the DPR stage. The government had started work on the ring road in 2005 with the aim of encouraging urbanization in the city’s surrounding areas. It has spent Rs 10 million on the project so far. In 2009, the people living in the path of the proposed ring road had urged the government to go ahead with the project and even agreed to forgo compensation for their land. According to the government’s original plan, the route will pass through Hemja, Puran Chaur, Lama Chaur, Bhalam, Kahu, Lekhnath Municipality and Bharat Pokhari. Meanwhile, Prabhat Kumar Jha, chief of the Division Road Office, Kaski, said that the length of the proposed ring road could change after the DPR. He added that if the detailed study and government paperwork progress smoothly, construction could start in fiscal 2013-14. The completion of the DPR will allow the project to look for funding from foreign donors if the government can’t put up the money, said department officials. The consultant Silt and Card will also prepare a concise Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) report as part of its contract.