The installation of a temporary bailey bridge over the Sunkoshi River has commenced at Phoksingtar, along the Diktel–Gaighat section of the Sagarmatha Highway.
The motorable concrete bridge, which connected Lichkiramche in Khotehang Rural Municipality-9, Khotang and Aaptar in Rautamai Rural Municipality-6, Udayapur, was swept away by floods on September 28.
On December 14, the Federal Road Supervision and Monitoring Office in Udayapur signed a contract with a construction company for the installation and subsequent dismantling of the Bailey bridge before the monsoon season, at a cost of Rs 12.94 million (including VAT), according to the state-owned news agency RSS. The agreement mandates that the contractor safely store the dismantled bridge materials.
Chief Engineer Pashupati Gyawali of the Road Department, Udayapur, stated that the contractor is expected to complete the installation and open the bridge for traffic by mid-January. The temporary structure will be a 50-meter-long, previously dismantled and stored after the motorable concrete bridge came into operation in December 2022.
For the past three months, travelers from Khotang have had to take a vehicle to Rasuwa Ghat, cross a suspension bridge on foot, and then board another vehicle in Udayapur to reach the plains.
The 120-meter-long motorable concrete bridge, designed with an “arch” structure, was brought into operation two years ago, reportedly before its full completion.
Meanwhile, the blacktopping of the 49-kilometer Mahure–Phoksingtar section of the Diktel–Gaighat road remains stalled, allegedly due to contractor negligence. This road serves as the shortest link between Khotang’s Diktel Bazar and several districts in the eastern plains.
RSS
