ILAM, Oct 12: A key section of the Kechana-Kanchanjunga fast track remains just 47 percent complete more than five years after its construction contract was awarded, with repeated deadline extensions failing to accelerate progress.
The 9.5-kilometer Belase-Rakse-Golakharka section was awarded to Khadka-Krishna-Saksham JV on July 13, 2021, for Rs 272.15 million, with a two-year deadline that included blacktopping. Nearly Rs 200 million allocated for the fast track in different fiscal years has been frozen due to construction delays, according to the project report.
The original deadline of January 14, 2024, was extended to July 2, 2025, and later to mid-October this year. However, progress has increased from around 45 percent at the end of the previous extension to just 47 percent.
“Despite the contractor’s commitments, there has been virtually no improvement in the pace of work,” said Pawan Bhattarai, chief of the Road Division Ilam.
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The contractor has again sought an extension. Bhattarai said the division had demanded a written explanation over the slow progress and would not grant another extension without credible grounds. He warned that penalties could be imposed and the contract terminated.
Around five kilometers of the section have been gravelled but remain unblacktopped, making travel difficult, particularly during the monsoon. The delays have compounded transport problems for residents of Ilam, Panchthar and Taplejung, especially when landslides disrupt the Mechi Highway.
Floods on October 4 and 5, 2025, damaged a bridge over the Maikhola, which has since been repaired. A Bailey bridge at Puwakhola and a box culvert at Thadekhola have also been built. However, the unfinished road continues to hinder transport, while heavy vehicles remain unable to use the Rajduwali section of the Mechi Highway.
Work on other sections is also progressing unevenly. Bhagawati Construction Service is building a two-kilometer stretch from Lodiya to Soktim, along with shorter sections near Belase Bridge and Mai Pokhari. The work is scheduled for completion by mid-July 2027, but construction on the Lodiya-Soktim section is only 12 percent complete. Vehicles still have to navigate mud up to two or three feet deep in some places.
Meanwhile, although a contract awarded to Dhulikhel-Ale JV for Rs 63.64 million has been completed, blacktopping is still underway on a remaining two-kilometer stretch between Soktim and Belase, according to the division.
Once completed, the fast track will shorten the journey between Ilam and Birtamod in Jhapa from around 84 kilometers via the Mechi Highway to approximately 47 kilometers.
Contractor cites Congress convention
The proprietor of Khadka-Krishna-Saksham JV is Prakash Khadka of Jajarkot, but his father, Ratna Bahadur Khadka, mayor of Chhedagad Municipality, is directly involved in the construction business.
Last June, Ratna Bahadur Khadka visited Ilam and pledged to make the road mud-free within 20 days and complete blacktopping by mid-October. During a visit by Minister for Physical Infrastructure Development Sunil Lamsal, the contractor was reportedly given another chance despite the division's move toward contract termination.
However, when contacted for an update, Khadka declined to discuss the construction delay, saying he was attending the Nepali Congress convention in Kathmandu.