Kathmandu: The construction of the Nagdhunga-Sisne Khola Tunnel started from three sections on December 23. The work is being carried out 24 hours a day.

Naresh Man Shakya, director of the Nagdhunga Tunnel Project, said that the project has seen nine percent progress. “The construction of the tunnel is in full swing,” he said. “There were obstacles at the beginning, but now the construction has gained momentum.”

Shakya said that the tunnel is being dug from three sections. “A maximum of six meters of tunnel is being dug daily,” he said. “The speed of digging the tunnel will increase after hard rock is found.” According to the project, the main tunnel will be 8.2 / 15 meters. This tunnel is being dug using the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM) method.

Project director Shakya said that a 139-meter tunnel has been dug towards Dhading (west). “A 49-meter tunnel has been dug on the evacuation side of Kathmandu,” he said. “A five-meter tunnel has been dug in the third section.”

The project is currently working in two shifts- day and night. The tunnel is being dug using drill and blast technology. The project will be dug like the Melamchi Drinking Water Project. The total length of the tunnel will be 2.68 kilometers.

The project aims to build two tunnels with the length of 9.5 meters and 4 meters, respectively. The project hopes to complete the tunnel in 16 months.

It is estimated to cost around 22.5 billion rupees, including two 500-meter roads and two flyovers and tunnels and compensation for affected people of Dhading and Kathmandu. The contract for the construction of the project was awarded to Hajma Ando Corporation, a Japanese Company. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli had laid the foundation stone of the tunnel in 2019.

The tunnel was started with the loan assistance of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on November 14. JICA has agreed to provide 16 billion rupees for the construction of the tunnel and the government will invest 6 billion rupees.

Project director Shakya said that the construction of flyover structure is being started towards the main tunnel of the project in Dhading, near the depot of Nepal Oil Corporation. Shakya said that the main tunnel of the project will be in Dhading and a flyover will be constructed near the depot of Nepal Oil Corporation.

“The construction of flyovers and access roads will also pick up speed soon,” he said. The project will have to construct 500 meters of access road on both sides of Dhading and Kathmandu.