SURKHET: The national pride Bheri-Babai Multipurpose Diversion Project, originally planned for completion within four years, remains unfinished even after 15 years, with both its cost and completion timeline continuing to rise.
Initially estimated to cost around Rs 16 billion, the project’s revised cost has reached Rs 33.19 billion. Around Rs 19.44 billion has already been spent.
The project aims to divert water from the Bheri River through a 12.2-kilometer tunnel into the Babai River in Bardiya. It is designed to generate 46.8 megawatts of electricity and provide year-round irrigation to around 51,000 hectares of farmland—36,000 hectares in Bardiya and 15,000 hectares in Banke.
The project’s overall physical progress has reached 67.4 percent, but progress on the civil works remains at just 46 percent.
Tunnel construction, considered one of the project’s major achievements, was completed ahead of schedule using a tunnel boring machine, the first such technology used for a major tunnel project in Nepal.
However, delays in the second-phase civil works have slowed the project. Guangdong Yuantian-Raman JV has been contracted to construct the 114-meter barrage, headworks and powerhouse on the Bheri River.
The delay in civil construction has also prevented the installation of hydro-mechanical and electro-mechanical equipment already brought to the project site, including gates, penstock pipes, turbines and generators. Construction of the transmission line is still at the environmental impact assessment stage.
The project was allocated Rs 1.7 billion in the last fiscal year, but only around 70 percent of the budget was spent. Around Rs 2.5 billion has been allocated for the current fiscal year.
The contractor’s second extended deadline expires on November 27. Officials say that if the contractor fails to make satisfactory progress by then, the government may have to terminate the contract and initiate a fresh procurement process.
Project Director Haridatta Paudel said there is no alternative to completing the project within the next three years. The government has also instructed authorities to complete the national pride project within the same timeframe.
The contractor’s performance by November and the government’s subsequent decision are expected to determine the future course of the long-delayed Bheri-Babai project.
