By A Staff Reporter
Kathmandu, Mar. 23: The Development and Technology Committee of the Federal House of Representatives has formed a sub-committee to study the delay in the construction of Kathmandu-Terai/Madhes Fast Track Project (KTFT).
Chairperson of the Development Committee Kalyani Kumari Khadka has formed a four-member sub-committee under the coordination of lawmaker and committee member Ganesh Pahadi to study the issues of unsatisfactory work, delay in construction and unresolved disputes of the project.
The members of the sub-committee are Jipchhiring Lama, Anil Jha, Kedar Sigdel and Indu Sharma. The sub-committee has been given two months to study and submit its report.
The sub-committee will study the dispute over the construction of the project. Accordingly, the sub-committee will study and give its opinion as the land acquisition in Bungmati of Khokana has not been completed and only 11 per cent of the work has been completed in four years.
Apart from this, the sub-committee will also study the quality of the work done so far and the irregularities in the recent call for contracts.
Meanwhile, Brigadier General and spokesperson of Nepali Army Shantosh Ballave Poudyal said that various complaints lodged against the project by those companies which took part in the pre-qualification bidding process of the second phase of tunnel and bridge construction work of the fast track are irrelevant and lack substantial proofs and claims.
“Rather than seeking legal gateway through the government channel like public procurement office and public procurement review committee, those dissenting companies disqualified from the pre-qualification bidding process have knocked the door of the Public Accounts Committee and Development and Technology Committee of the federal parliament to delay and push the project further back,” Brigadier General Poudyal said.
“The Fast Track project office will fully support the sub-committee formed by the Development and Technology Committee of the parliament today and further help to provide detail information to the sub-committee members to know more about the reality of the project,” Poudyal said.
Fast Track project chief and Lieutenant General and Chief of General Staff (CGS) Prabhu Ram Sharma and his team were present at the meeting to furnish answer to questions raised by the committee members and clear confusion regarding the project.
Secretary at the Ministry of Defence Reshmi Raj Pandey and other officials were present at the meeting.