KATHMANDU: The government has approved the guidelines on tunnel construction.

The guideline sets the standard for making tunnel construction cost-effective and well managed.

The meeting of the Council of Ministers held three days back took this decision. Proposal to this was forwarded by the Ministry of Physical Infrastructures and Transport, according to government spokesperson and Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Dr. Yubaraj Khatiwada.

He informed that the government prepared its own criteria for tunnel construction after the country began a tunnel way.
“Earlier, we had no standard of our own. It now helps with a cost estimation of the development project adopting tunnel construction,” he made it clear.

Three tunnel ways including national pride project, Kathmandu-Terai fast track, will be built based on this standard.

The government has already begun tunnel construction at Naagdhunga.

A similar tunnel is being constructed at Siddhababa of Butwal-Palpa roadway. Tokha-Chhahare tunnel is also under construction.