December 18: Construction of a concrete bridge over the Tamor River in eastern Nepal is yet to be completed even though 12 years have elapsed since the signing of its contract.    
The construction of the bridge linking Terhathum and Panchthar districts has not gained momentum. It is uncertain how long it will take to complete the construction of the bridge.    
One has to travel 116 kilometers to reach Dharan from Myanglung via Basantapur, Sidhuwa, Hile and Dhankuta. After the construction of the bridge, Dharan can be reached directly through Tamor corridor, which will cut short the time by half.

Due to the inordinate delay in the construction work, the residents of Kummayak of Panchthar have to walk seven to eight hours carrying materials on their backs to reach the Friday weekly market at Hatia, Myanglung of Tehrathum.

Hatia is near Kummayak Rural Municipality in Panchthar district. The goods produced in the village are taken to the Friday market at Hatia of Myanglung for sale. The traders return home with soap, salt, oil, clothes and clothes on their backs from Myanglung.    
Ramesh Thapa, who had come to sell almonds from Bijuwapani of Kummayak rural municipality to Myanglung in the Friday market, said, "We feel that we would not have had to carry a heavy load if the bridge had been constructed."    
The government had signed a contract with Swachchhanda Contractor Company in June 2011 for the construction of the bridge at a cost of Rs 130 million. As per the agreement, the company was supposed to complete the construction of the bridge by July 2018. Chief of the Road Division Office, Dhankuta, Ram Kumar Dev, said only 50 percent of the work of the bridge, which is 3 meters wide and 157 meters long, has been completed so far.

“Out of the five pillars, only four have been constructed. We are extending the construction deadline till mid-July 2024", he said.    
The contractor company's representative Ajay Lamichhane said that the project was delayed because there was no road leading to the bridge from Myanglung when the construction of the bridge started. “It took time to build the road, which was necessary to transport construction materials. Therefore, the construction of the bridge was delayed,” he said.    
Arjan Dhungana of Myanglung and Dik Bahadur Karki of Laligurans municipality had lodged a complaint with the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) accusing the authorities concerned of misappropriating funds in the name of the project. Local residents of Myanglung have been putting pressure on the Myanglung Municipality and the District Administration Office, Tehrathum, by forming a committee to press for the timely construction of the bridge over the Tamor River. -- RSS