KATHMANDU: The government is preparing to speed up the upgrade of the Hetauda–Narayanghat section under the East-West Highway expansion plan.
The 70 km road, currently two lanes, will be expanded into four lanes with concessional financing from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and final design approval have reached the last stage.
According to Chudharaj Dhakal, Director of the ADB Project Directorate at the Department of Roads, both the EIA and design works are progressing together. He said the road design has been completed and is now in the approval phase.
The department has already reviewed the design and returned it with suggestions for improvements. The team is now preparing to incorporate those suggestions and resubmit it for final approval.
“We have received the design once with comments. After updating it, we will send it back to the department within a few days,” Dhakal told MeroAuto. “The EIA approval is also in its final stage.”
The project expects the design approval to be completed within the next one to one-and-a-half months. Once approved, the tender process will begin. The estimated cost of this road expansion is around Rs 50 billion.
The government aims to upgrade the entire 1,027 km East-West Highway to international standards. Contracts have already been awarded for sections such as Kakarbhitta–Laukahi (96 km), Kamala–Kanchanpur (86.83 km), Kamala–Pathlaiya (130 km), Narayanghat–Butwal (114 km), and Butwal–Gorusinge–Chandrauta (69 km). The Hetauda–Narayanghat section will be tendered next.
Tender to open by February/March
Dhakal said the tender for the Hetauda–Narayanghat expansion will be called by February/March. The tender will move forward once the design is approved and the loan agreement with ADB is finalized. The road will be divided into two packages for bidding. Discussions with ADB on the loan agreement are ongoing and expected to conclude by January.
2 km flyover planned in Tikauli
In urban areas, the project will develop a 6-lane main road with service lanes on both sides. Other stretches will be four-lane.
A 2 km flyover will be built in the Tikauli forest area of Chitwan to reduce vehicle–wildlife collisions. This will be Nepal’s first flyover inside a protected area. According to Director Dhakal, vehicles will move on the flyover while wildlife will pass underneath. The structure will have six lanes, four middle lanes for vehicles and one lane on each side for pedestrians and bicycles.
“Tikauli forest is a high-risk zone for wildlife. The flyover is designed to improve safety,” he said.
The flyover will feature 67 pillars and cost around Rs 7 billion. Of this, Rs 3 billion will be provided as ADB grant, while Rs 4 billion will be funded by the Nepal government.
