Vehicles are currently using a makeshift road built on the bank of the Sunkoshi River alongside the BP Highway, which was damaged by floods and landslides in late September. To ensure uninterrupted travel for passengers preferring the shortest route that connects Kathmandu with eastern Terai, authorities are upgrading this alternative route by raising its level above the riverbank.
The alternative road stretches from Chowkidanda in Namobuddha Municipality-5, Kavrepalanchowk, to Barkhekhola on the Sindhuli border. As the rainy season approaches, the Road Division Bhaktapur is reinforcing the road to prevent disruptions, as the existing makeshift road along the embankment will be vulnerable to rising water levels.
To address this, work is underway to change the river’s course and elevate the road above the current embankment. The restoration efforts are progressing rapidly in the Chowkidanda section. The flood had washed away approximately eight kilometers of the highway from Chowkidanda to the Sindhuli border.
“For now, we have graveled the damaged sections and rerouted the road along the embankment in some places,” said Durga Prasad, an engineer at the Road Division Office, Bhaktapur. “Now, wherever the road runs along the riverbank, we are shifting the river’s course and elevating the road above its existing level.”
According to Chandra Bahadur Lama, an employee at the Bhaktapur Road Division, work has been completed at Boksekuna and Chiuribas near Mangaltar, while remaining work at Mamti, Dalabesi, Narke, Gimdibesi, Charsayabesi, and Katunje Ghumti is still in progress. The Chowkidanda section is expected to be completed in a few days.
Two engineers, one sub-engineer, and 30 operators from the Road Division Office are working continuously to expedite the process. The office aims to complete the work by May. If successful, government officials hope that vehicles will be able to operate on the BP Highway even during the monsoon. -- RSS
