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The Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation has launched an integrated digital monitoring portal to enable real-time monitoring of the progress, budget mobilization, and issue management of Nepal’s national pride irrigation projects.

According to the ministry, the first phase of the portal includes the Sikta Irrigation Project, Rani Jamara–Kulariya Irrigation Project, Bheri–Babai Diversion Project, Sunkoshi–Marin Diversion Project, Mahakali Irrigation Project, and Babai Irrigation Project. Other irrigation projects will be gradually integrated into the system in the next phase.

The ministry said the portal was launched after Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Biraj Bhakta Shrestha recently conducted on-site inspections of the Sikta, Rani Jamara–Kulariya, Bheri–Babai, and Babai irrigation projects, with the aim of making project management more effective.

With the portal now operational, the minister and the ministry’s secretary will be able to monitor from their offices the physical and financial progress of projects, budget expenditure, contract management, construction status, and project-related issues in real time. The ministry believes this will enable regular monitoring of projects at the highest level.

Previously, the actual status of projects was largely known only through field inspections or reports received at the end of the fiscal year. This made it difficult to assess the progress of projects whose deadlines had been repeatedly extended. The ministry expects the new system to address this problem.

Under the new arrangement, each project chief will be required to update the portal every week with details of physical progress, financial status, contract implementation, claims, disputes, construction obstacles, and efforts made to resolve them.

The ministry said the digital system will map project issues, generate automated progress reports, and clearly identify why specific contract packages have been delayed, how long the problems have persisted, and which agency or individual is responsible for resolving them.

According to the ministry, the portal will also be integrated with the monitoring systems of the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers and the National Planning Commission. This is expected to enable different government agencies to make decisions based on a single, unified set of data.

Similarly, the ministry said that budget proposals for the upcoming fiscal year will also be prepared using data generated through the system. Budget requests will be supported by evidence on project progress, spending capacity, and existing implementation challenges.

Launching the portal, Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha said the ministry’s digital dashboard, while it does not directly complete construction work, will help identify issues that often remain stuck in files for months and accelerate the decision-making process. He added that issues requiring inter-ministerial coordination will no longer have to wait until the end of the fiscal year, as they can now be identified and addressed on a weekly basis.

urjasanchar