BP Highway reopens following three-day closure

KAVRE: The BP Highway, which had been blocked for three days due to floods and landslides, has reopened for traffic.

The Highway was obstructed by landslides and mudslides at several locations along the Chowkidanda–Nepalthok section in Kavrepalanchok district.

According to Suman Yogesh, Chief Divisional Senior Engineer at the Division Road Office, Bhaktapur, the Highway resumed operation on Sunday morning after debris was cleared and a temporary diversion was constructed at the site of the mudslides. A 50-meter diversion was built at Charsayabesi in Roshi Rural Municipality-8, Kavrepalanchowk, to restore traffic movement.

Engineer Yogesh said that clearing the debris and landslides was challenging due to recurring dry landslides. The obstruction could not be removed on Saturday as dry landslides continued in the Mamti area of Roshi-12. “The Highway has now been brought into operation after removing the obstructions,” he said.

Continuous rainfall since October 30 had caused multiple landslides, completely blocking the Chowkidanda–Nepalthok section with rocks and mud at several points.

Traffic movement had been suspended since Thursday night due to persistent dry landslides from slopes above the highway.

According to Engineer Yogesh, the landslides triggered by incessant rain had blocked the road at several locations, including Chowkidanda, Biruwadanda, Dalabesi, Narke, Charsayabesi, and Ghumaune.

He added that traffic along the highway had been halted several times in the past as well due to monsoon-related risks.

Last year’s floods and landslides had washed away about eight kilometers of the BP Highway from Chowkidanda in Kavrepalanchok to Barkhekhola in Sindhuli. “After the road was washed away, a temporary track was opened along the river to allow one-way and later two-way traffic,” Yogesh said.

The floods and landslides caused extensive damage to several sections of the highway—particularly the third section (34 km from Khurkot in Sindhuli to Nepalthok) and the fourth section (50 km from Nepalthok to Dhulikhel in Kavrepalanchok)—out of the total 160 km stretch.

The Division Road Office said that the process of awarding contracts for the permanent reconstruction of the damaged sections has already begun. The BP Highway, a vital short route connecting eastern Nepal to the capital, is used by thousands of vehicles daily.