BAGLUNG: The Gandaki Province government is preparing to construct 15 Bailey bridges simultaneously in Baglung district to improve road connectivity and ease transportation difficulties during the monsoon season.
The bridges will be built over small and medium-sized rivers along rural roads where the absence of permanent bridges frequently disrupts vehicular movement during periods of heavy rainfall.
The construction process has been initiated through the Infrastructure Development Office, Baglung, in the current fiscal year. The provincial government has allocated Rs 4 million for each bridge, according to Gandaki Province Minister for Economic Affairs Jeet Sherchan.
Minister Sherchan said preparations are underway to complete the detailed project reports (DPRs), including surveys, designs and cost estimates, before initiating the contract process.
“We are preparing to begin work on all 15 bridges simultaneously within the current fiscal year. Depending on the available budget, the bridges are expected to be completed gradually over the next two to three years,” he said.
He added that constructing Bailey bridges over smaller rivers would be quicker and more convenient under the provincial government’s policy of building bridges up to 40 metres long at a cost of up to Rs 40 million.
According to Anup Thapa, chief of the Infrastructure Development Office, Baglung, the proposed bridges will help connect most rural roads in the district to provincial roads and, ultimately, the national highway network.
Thapa said surveys of the proposed construction sites were underway, after which the office would proceed with the procurement process based on the approved designs and cost estimates.
Under the plan, five Bailey bridges will be constructed in Nisikhola Rural Municipality. Surveys are currently being conducted at Siip-Chhyarchhyare Jhimaghat, Dhartichowk, Ghartithok-Chaite Ghat, Talghat and Budarnath.
Similarly, four bridges are planned in Dhorpatan Municipality at Chhentung, Chitreghat, Dawal Khola and Lakuribot. Another bridge will be constructed at Thamathara Thulokhola in Jaimini Municipality.
In Kathekhola Rural Municipality, bridges are planned at Kathekhola-Dobilla Chanauteghat, Lekhani Dobillakhola and Kadeshkhola.
The Infrastructure Development Office has also proposed constructing bridges at Masbar in Galkot Municipality, Upper Bongadobhanghat in Tamankhola Rural Municipality and Jotikhola in Badigad Rural Municipality.
Once completed, the bridges are expected to reduce road disruptions caused by rising river levels during the rainy season and provide rural communities with more reliable, year-round transportation access.
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