Kathmandu, Apr. 26: The Bagmati Area Sewerage Construction and Improvement Project implementation and follow-up committee says it has completed three forth of the pollution control in Bagmati River and environmental protection work in Bagmati including Pashupati area over the last four and a half years.
The main objective of the project is to keep preserve ecology of the Bagmati River from Shivapuri watershed area to Chovar.
The task involves construction and operation of sewage processing centres and its maintenance, control of river erosion, construction of roads and afforestation along the river and generating public awareness on river pollution control.
Its work were divided into four phases and the current first and second phase works are concerned with construction of drainage and sewerage from Gokarna to Tamraganga and Mitrapark to Tamraganga, tunnel from Tamraganga to Tilganga sewage processing centre at Guheswari expanse and 8-metre roads and 12-metre green belts from Gokarna to Tamraganga along Bagmati River and promotion of public awareness on environmental preservation.
Preparation of a master plan on Shivapuri-Chovar drainage system will be completed within these phases, while construction of drainage on both sides of the river and a sewage treatment centres is targeted to be completed in the third and fourth phases.
The sewerage system under construction aims to cover about 537 hectares area with a population of 198,000 in the first and second phases. Nearly 66 percent of the work have now been completed.
Construction of 1446 metres of drainage from Gaurighat-to Tamraganga has been completed while 10 kilometre portion of the 12-kilometre Gokarna-Guheswari drainage system has been completed so far.
55-metre sewerage crossing from the sewage treatment centre south east of Guheswari to the Bagmati River has also been completed.
The project has also completed 4.35 kilometre of the river control and embankment construction works.
According to the committee, 61 percent of the sewage processing centre construction have also been completed and the rest will be through by next February.
It had acquired 95 ropanies of land for the construction of the Sewerage Processing Centre.
Land survey is also underway for acquisition of land falling within 20 metres of the river banks for green belt area.
Besides, it has provided a three-day training to 135 women of Nayapati, Pashupati, Sundarijal, Gokarna, Danchhi and Bhadrabas as part of its plan to generate public awareness on its works.
One kilometre road along green belt area has already been built whereas the plan is to build a seven-kilometre road.
Tamraganga-Tilganga tunnel construction work has been delayed because of the negligence on the part of the contractors. Only 185 metres of tunnelling work has been done so far whereas the plan is to complete 522 metres of tunnel.
As a result of the delay, pollution of the river at Pashupati and Guheswari river continued still unchecked. Posing grave problem from religious, touristic and environmental aspects.
As per the government decision of March this year, a contract was reached last month with a Chinese company to complete the entire tunnel work in 14 months at the cost of Rs 89.33 million. Under the contract, the company is required to complete the tunnel work by the end of next fiscal year.