Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba inspected the Narayangadh-Muglin road section on Wednesday. He took stock of an ongoing road expansion works at Dasdhunga area and inquired the project officials about the progress so far. 

The prime minister also directed the project chief and the construction company to work at a war footing and complete the project as early as possible, saying that the road was the “lifeline” of the nation. 

PM Deuba also  pledged  to provide the necessary help and resources to complete the project at the earliest. 

Chandra Narayan Yadav, chief at the Narayangadh-Muglin Road Project, briefed Prime Minister Deuba on the project’s progress. 

He said that 54 percent of the works had been completed so far and that the project had experienced delays due to the 2015 earthquake, fuel shortage during the Madhes protest, and management of electricity poles and water supply pipes.  

According to the Narayangadh-Muglin Road Project, frequent landslides along the road were also hindering project’s progress.

As many as 141 major landslides have broken out along the Narayangadh-Muglin road section since the project started in 2015.

Yadav said 416 hours were spent just to clear the landslide debris and resume transportation.

Siddhartha Highway obstructed

The Tansen-Butwal section of Siddhartha Highway has been blocked after a landslide at Tinau Rural Municipality-3.

The landslide debris have landed on the road near Dobhan area, blocking the traffic.

The traffic police chief, Prabin Acharya, said on Wednesday that continuous rainfall was hindering their effort to clear the blockade.

The road between Dobhan and Siddhababa is prone to landslides during rainy season, Acharya said, noting that this was not the first time the road was obstructed by a landslide.

While the effort was underway to resume the traffic, scores of vehicles were stranded till late evening.