Minister Kulman Ghising Highlights Budget Shortages and Coordination Issues in Road Maintenance

Kathmandu: Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Physical Infrastructure and Transport, and Urban Development, Kulman Ghising, has stated that problems in road maintenance are arising due to a lack of budget and a lack of coordination between federal, provincial, and local levels. 

Addressing the 23rd anniversary ceremony of Road Board Nepal on Tuesday, he said that many roads could not be repaired because the Road Board has not been able to use the entire amount collected by the government as revenue for regular programs.

According to him, although the maintenance of main highways and feeder roads is the government's responsibility, expected work has not been possible everywhere due to limited resources. 

Minister Ghising mentioned that there is confusion among the public because the division of authority is not clear under the federal structure. 

He stated that demands ranging from small culverts to roads, which should be handled by local levels, are coming to the federal government, and it seems the jurisdictions between federal, provincial, and local levels are still not clearly understood.

He clarified that the government is forced to cancel contracts of construction companies that do not work for a long time, but emphasized that all businessmen should not be blamed. 

He said that there are good construction businessmen who should be encouraged, and expressed the view that overall development is not possible without building the capacity of the construction sector. 

Mentioning that it has been difficult to meet many demands for maintenance and expansion coming from local levels through the Road Board due to budget constraints, he emphasized the effective and transparent use of available resources.

Minister Ghising said it is a necessity for the government to terminate the contracts of construction companies that do not work for years. 

He mentioned that the tendency to take contracts at extremely low prices but not complete the work on time has caused great suffering to the public. "Currently, we are managing and terminating contracts in many places, and many contracts are being canceled. 
That is actually our necessity," he said. 

He explained that contracts were canceled because work had not been done for years, causing much distress to the people, and the situation where work is stalled after taking contracts at very low prices had to be managed.

Clarifying that not all construction businessmen are wrong, he said that those who perform quality work on time are being continuously encouraged. "We are not saying all construction businessmen are wrong. 

There are many good construction businessmen who have done great work and completed it at the right time. We have continuously encouraged such businessmen," he said. 

He mentioned that the role of construction businessmen is important in development and stated that the government will move forward with capacity building and policy reforms.