The residents of Bara district are not satisfied with design of the Postal Highway which has finally kicked off construction after a long wait. Locals want the Postal Highway to be four lane instead of the current double lane design.

The number of vehicles plying on the roads of the region has increased, hence the demand for wider road. 

A similar road project connecting the border with the East-West Highway is being upgraded to four lanes but the Postal Highway—whose demarcation was done before the East-West Highway—is being upgraded with only double lane.

Residents of Bara backed by their local representatives have put forth a strong demand for the construction of four land road, claiming that the highway lifeline of Tarai should be developed with a new design. 

Mayor of Kalaiya Sub-metropolitan City Rajesh Ray Yadav  has already submitted the request letter to Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, demanding for a four-lane Postal Highway. “As the sub-metropolis has been left behind in terms of road network, the central government must provide due attention to improve our road network,” said Yadav. “The Postal Highway will be wider only under the initiation of the central government.” The increasing traffic along with the rapid population growth of Kaliya and neighbouring Birgunj can be sustained only with a good and wide road network in the region, according to Yadav. 

“Specially, the road connecting the famous Gadhimai Temple of the district with Birgunj, the economic town of region must be wider,” he said.  

Umesh Lal Das, who represents the civil society of Bara, blamed the central government for not giving proper attention to the Postal Highway. 

“The 20-km long road connecting Kalaiya with Birgunj is very poor and it needs to be upgraded to four lane,” said Das. The locals have asked the Postal Highway Office to acquire 15 metres of land on either side of the road from the centre line to build the wider road.

The Postal Highway links all 20 districts in the Tarai. Although talks on development of the Postal Highway began as early as 1991, concrete step to build the national pride project was taken in May 2004, when Nepal and India signed an agreement to conduct a study to upgrade roads that link the Postal Highway with various districts in the Tarai.

The Postal Highway, which was previously used by postmen to deliver mail, stretches from the east to the west and is 975 km long. But to link this highway with various districts in the Tarai, 32 different roads of 817 km in length have to be built. This means building the highway involves construction of a total of 1,792 km of roads. Nepal and India signed an agreement to build the first phase of the project in January 2010.