After nine years, the East-West primary national highway will finally be fully widened and blacktopped come December this year. This is according to the Department of Surface Transport’s Lingmethang regional office in Monggar. Works to blacktop the remaining 90-kilometre stretch between Ura in Bumthang and Yongkola in Monggar is currently underway. Blacktopping works in Bumthang are nearing completion while most areas under Monggar are being prepared for blacktopping.
Towards Monggar, works are spread across a 63-kilometre stretch between Serpang to Yongkola. According to the Chief Engineer of the department’s regional office in Lingmethang, half of the work has been completed.
Out of the five packages, the Thrumshingla to Sengor stretch has been fully blacktopped. Works on the other two packages are also scheduled to complete by the end of this month.
Meanwhile, around 40 per cent of the works in the remaining two packages between Sengor to Latongla and Namling to Yongkola are complete.
‘‘Another two packages which were awarded later are also within the time frame only because we have been monitoring the progress on a monthly basis, so we have noticed that those contract works are within the schedule only,” said Kinzang Dorji, Chief Engineer.
He added that since the highway runs through high-altitude passes, snow and cold weather might affect their work progress. However, the office is expecting work to complete within the time frame.
Contractors are also speeding up work to meet the deadline.
‘‘We have been awarded two packages, packages three and five. Package five is complete. Regarding the third package, we have a lot of time, around eight months. So, we will be completing it before the deadline, approximately three to four months before the completion deadline,” said Tashi, Project Engineer of Lotey Construction Private Limited.
The widening and blacktopping of the east-west highway which started in 2014 was initially expected to complete in 2017. However, the continuous flow of traffic and the occurrence of roadblocks along the highway have hindered the work progress according to officials. Missing several deadlines, the completion of the East-West highway widening project had always been a recurring question raised during most of the parliament sessions since the project started.
Karma Wangdi
Edited by Kipchu
