Work on Ring Road expansion to begin soon: Minister Dahal

KATHMANDU, MARCH 7: Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Devendra Dahal, has announced that the work on the second section of the Kathmandu Ring Road expansion project will begin soon.

In response to queries from lawmakers during today’s House of Representatives (HoR) meeting, he shared that the construction of the 'service lane' is already underway for the second section of the ring road. Minister Dahal explained that the remaining construction work will commence with support from the Chinese government, as all preparatory work for the main lane has been completed.

He mentioned that the Ministry has taken steps to increase capital expenditures.According to Dahal, significant progress has been made in the construction and upgrading of national highways, including the Nagdhunga-Muglin, BP Highway, North-South Corridor, and East-West Highway projects.

He stated, "The construction of 41 bridges has been completed, and the breakthrough of the Siddhababa Tunnel occurred by mid-January 2025. A total of three kilometers of track and 246 kilometers of two-lane road have been blacktopped, and 30 kilometers of road has been completed towards six lanes."

Addressing the delay in distributing driving licenses, Minister Dahal explained that the target had not been met due to technical issues. However, he assured that the issuance of 'smart cards' has been expedited. "While 900,000 smart licenses were expected to be distributed, only 169,439 have been printed and distributed. For two to three months, the card printing machine was out of service, but those issues have been resolved, and card printing is now progressing faster," he said.

Heassured the lawmakers that the issues raised regarding the ministry have been taken seriously and expressed his commitment to resolving them.

 

 

 

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