As the fuel supply situation eases in the Valley, improvement of roads linking the Nagarkot hill station with Kathmandu has picked up pace.

Both the major roads leading up to Nagarkot from the Valley were badly damaged due to the recurring temblors last year and landslips during the monsoon. Improvement and expansion of the 18-km Kamalbinayak-Telkot-Nagarkot road and the 16-km Kamalbinayak-Chareli-Nagarkot road that were hit by the April 25 earthquake failed to regain the construction pace as a result of the fuel crisis caused by the border blockade.

A joint-venture of Aravali Infrapower Limited and Shailung Construction Company Pvt Ltd has been contracted to expand the Kamalbinayak-Telkot-Nagarkot road. Local Raju Dhakal informed that cutting of hills for road expansion was complete and the works of filling trenches and building walls along the road were under way. After expansion, the three-metre road will become seven-metre wide of two lanes. Similarly, the Kamalbinayak-Chareli-Nagarkot road, which was constructed in 2015 by the Asian Development Bank’s Rural Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Sector Development Programme at the cost of Rs60 million, is also undergoing expansion. Project Manager Narendranath Koirala, a senior divisional engineer at the Department of Roads, said the expansion part of the project was nearly over with walls being built on the roadsides. “The single-lane road will be expanded to 10-metre wide of which seven metres will be blacktopped,” said Koirala. “The works will be complete within this fiscal year if fuel is available.”

Earlier both the roads had developed fractures and were covered with mud, causing inconveniences for travellers. Expansion projects had dug up earth on both sides, leaving behind cavities as large as 20 feet deep and 50 feet wide at more than a dozen places. Road accidents were common as the Metropolitan Police Range Bhaktapur reported an average of 10 motorcycle accidents each day in the area.

Apart from making it convenient for tourists to travel to Nagarkot, improvement of the roads will also come as a boon for local residents. Dairy entrepreneur Ramhari Timalsina of Gairibisaune Deupur VDC in Kavre district said it was extremely difficult to deliver milk to Bhaktapur on his own truck due to the road condition.

“As I carry milk, there is always a threat of spillage due to rough roads. The dust makes it more difficult as it obstructs vision,” he said, expressing hope that the condition will improve after expansion.

The Kamalbinayak-Telkot-Nagarkot road will benefit residents of Kharipati, Telkot, Lama Tole and Pipalbot villages which fall along the way while the Kamalbinayak-Chareli-Nagarkot stretch passes through Bhatkekopati, Sudal, Jitpurphedi, Chareli and Kalamasi villages. The same roads also link Kavre district, which lies beyond Nagarkot.