Given the topography and nature of roads in Bhutan, road engineers deal with slope disasters almost on a daily basis, especially during monsoon season. To provide technical expertise to prevent such disasters from happening, a seminar on countermeasures of slope disaster on roads was held recently.
A four-year project for capacity development on countermeasures of slope disaster on roads is currently underway under the Department of Roads (DoR). Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in collaboration with DoR under the Works and Human Settlement Ministry had started the project in Bhutan. As part of the project, the seminar was conducted to share Japanese technology to Bhutanese engineers by a team of experts for the first time.
“In this project, we will provide technical support but after that, maybe JICA will carry out budget. We will start some grant-aid maybe after 5 to 10 years for slope disaster prevention. Bhutan is a mountainous country just like Japan. Japanese technology are usually used in Bhutan. In this project, technical works are quite basic. But after this project, I want to transport high technology for road slope disaster prevention in Bhutan,” said Kokusai Kogyo, the JICA Expert Team Leader.
Planning and preparedness are some of the first keys to preventing such disasters from happening. DoR has already started to implement Japanese technology on sites such as east-west northern highway. Such technology is currently being installed at Chendebji and Bjeezam in Trongsa.
“After designing from the advice we got from JICA expert team, the earth reinforcement wall will absorb all the impact from the rockfall, so that structure will perform as a shock absorber. Through this, the highways will be protected. Since this project is a technical project, after the completion of the project, we will be able to design similar structures that will protect our highways,” said Sonam Tshering, an Engineer with DoR.
“We did a site survey in Lobesa and about 9 sites in Trongsa area. Out of that 10 sites, we picked up a site near Bjeezam as the pilot site for the construction and also to demonstrate to our road engineers and stakeholders. When we talk about suitable drainage works and facilities installed for ‘Debris Flow’, we are trying to focus on the size of the drainages. And when we focus on it, we have to do the survey of the catchment area and the channel that the stream is flowing. We have to do an in-depth study and then only we have to go for the sizes of the drainages,” Tashi Tenzin, the Executive Engineer at DoR.
According to the DoR, they will replicate the technology if the pilot projects succeed. Proper and appropriate countermeasures will be put for three years under the project.
“One of the major challenges that DoR engineers has been facing is the technical know-how. Of course, the issue of resources is there but more than resources, we felt that there is a need to develop the capacity of engineers as in providing appropriate countermeasures for any kind of disaster. And this project is aimed at developing such competence of the engineers of the department,” said Dorji Gyeltshen, the Chief Engineer for DoR.
Engineers from the DoR headquarter in Thimphu, Trongsa and Wangduephodrang attended the technical seminar. The DoR is optimistic that slope disasters on roads will drastically reduce after the completion of the project on December 2022.
Tshering Dendup
