In the eastern section of the Narayangadh-Butwal road construction project, 50 kilometers of the road have been blacktopped. Out of the 63-kilometer stretch from Gaindakot to Daunne, one side of 50 kilometers has been paved.
According to project information officer Shiva Khanal, the remaining 13 kilometers are being paved with the goal of completion before the upcoming monsoon. Since traveling through the Daunne section has been challenging, four kilometers in that area and an additional four kilometers of winding roads will be concreted before the monsoon. The concreting work will begin this week.
“In the first phase, we are prioritizing making one side of the road operational, while work on the second phase is also progressing simultaneously,” said Khanal.
The contract for the project was signed in Magh 2075 (January-February 2019), with the initial goal of completing the road expansion by Shrawan 2079 (July-August 2022). The 113-kilometer-long Narayangadh-Butwal road has been divided into two sections for construction. Due to delays, the deadline was extended to Shrawan 2081 (July-August 2024) and later further extended to Shrawan 2082 (July-August 2025).
The road expansion project is being carried out with financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) at a total cost of NPR 16.99 billion. Of the 113 kilometers, 70 kilometers will have four lanes, while 29 kilometers will have four lanes along with 6-meter-wide service lanes on both sides. In the Daunne area, 14 kilometers of road will have three lanes.
