January 16: Sankhu, an ancient town in north-eastern part of Kathmandu, has witnessed decline in the number of tourists due to the poor condition of road along the Chahabil-Sankhu road section, according to RastriyaSamacharSamiti (RSS). 

The 11.46 km-road section which leads to various destinations such as Nagarkot, tea estate at Bhotechaur in Sindhupalchowkpopularly known as 'Mini Ilam', picnic spot JarsinghPauwa and Jhule among other tourist spots, has long been in a sorry state. 

Paragliding pilot at Shankharapur, Ajay Chaulagain, said, "The road here is in such a poor condition that tourists are facing problems to reach here due to potholes, dust and mud on the road." 
According to him, tourists coming to Shankharapur for paragliding express their annoyance due to this.

"Road is the prime reason for boosting or backing tourism. The tourists who want to enjoy paragliding while gazing at the mountains opt for other alternatives due to the poor road here,"  RSS quoted Chaulagain as saying.

The 8-meter wide road section which is undergoing expansion to 22 metres has been left unmanaged although the expansion ought to be completed by December last year. Sand and aggregates lie alongside the road. During the monsoon, the road section is muddy while it is full of dust in summer and winter. 

Moreover, the travel agencies have been sending their tourists who want to visit JarsinghPauwa for paragliding or sightseeing elsewhere.

Ram Prasad Timalsina, proprietor of Hotel Heaven Hill, shared, "The vehicles used for tourists get stuck in the middle of the road due to potholes. Traveling in two-wheelers is perilous." 
He further bemoaned that in lack of timely maintenance of this road section, tourism sector has suffered a setback. 

Hotelier Timalsina complained that frequent call attention to the road construction company and the government bodies on the issue have gone unheeded. RSS reported that the Bouddha-Jorpati-Sankhu road is in a very sorry state for the last three years. The condition of the Jorpati-Sundarijal road is also very bad. People living in settlements alongside the road and commuters are irritated by the thick dust that issues when vehicles ply on the road. So are the roadside vendors. People are bearing the brunt due to such condition of the road. 

“One cannot see the road due to the dust when it is dry. The innumerable potholes and ditches in the road make driving risky and challenging. The condition gets worse when it rains,” explained Dev Narayan Chaulagain of Narayantar, Jorpati. 

The BouddhanathStupa, a world heritage site is located close to this road. The religious site Sankhu also lies along this road. 

Three years ago the government brought a plan of upgrading the Bouddha-Jorpati-Sankhu road into 22 metres wide four-lane road from Chabahil, according to RSS. The Kathmandu Valley Road Extension Project called for tenders in May 2015 for the construction of this road. It awarded the contract to four construction companies four months later. The project has given the responsibility of road expansion to an additional company after it seemed the four companies appointed earlier would not be able to complete the works on time. 

Project information officer BishwaBijayaLal Shrestha said that the Supreme Court has recently issued an order to provide compensation to the people whose land has been acquired for the road expansion. 
Shrestha clarified that the works have been delayed also due to the compensation process. “Road expansion works are progressing ahead smoothly except at places where there is dispute over the land. The work would be completed soon,” he said.