Ominous signs of further delays in the completion of the first phase of work in the Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa have once again started emerging. The first phase of work was supposed to be completed by December 2017. But shortages of fuel and building materials due to the months-long Tarai banda and the Indian trade embargo compelled the government to extend the deadline to June 2018.

But just as work at the project site had started picking up with the normalisation of supply, the Chinese contractor has been found dragging its feet. The project developer has set a target of completing 50 percent of construction works by the end of this fiscal year in mid-July. So far, 26 percent of the work has been completed. But to meet the annual target, around 300 construction workers, 65 to 70 trucks and tippers, and half a dozen rollers and graders have to be mobilised, according to project chief Om Sharma. But this has not happened.

The completion of the first phase of work at the airport will enable the movement of 760,000 passengers per year. The arrival of such a big number of tourists to one destination would not only help Nepal promote the birthplace of Gautam Buddha, it would also give a major fillip to the country’s tourism industry, which has not yet been able to attract even a million tourists a year. 

Moreover, the airport would also function as an alternative to the crowded Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu, allowing aircraft that need to divert from the TIA—due to weather conditions or other reasons—to land within the country’s territory rather than flying to Indian or other airports in the region. 

As such, the Gautam Buddha International Airport is a strategic project for Nepal. The government should exert pressure on the contractor—China’s Northwest Civil Aviation Airport Construction Group—to speed up construction so as to complete the first phase of the project by the deadline.

The government is generally lenient with contractors and extends deadlines easily if they delay. As a result, projects take years to complete. This attitude should change because it only raises the projects’ cost and prevents citizens from benefitting from various services. The airport project office has already sought clarification on the delay from the Chinese contractor. Perhaps, the Civil Aviation Ministry should also summon the contractor and give clear-cut instructions to complete the works on time.