According to the full electrification program, it has been a year since electric poles were installed in various wards of Kapurkot Rural Municipality, including Gaadapani. However, except for a few places, the work of wiring and line expansion has still not been carried out.

After wards 1, 4, and 6 of Kumakh Rural Municipality were also included in the full electrification program, the construction company has installed poles in Tatke, Jimali, Wada Gaun, and Swikot. However, the wiring has not yet been done, and in some villages, even the poles have not been installed.

Although the local residents have been urging for the electrification work to be carried out swiftly, the construction company has been ignoring their requests. As a result, locals are worried that their hope of getting electricity on time may not be fulfilled.

Not just in two areas, but to bring electricity to every household in all 10 local levels of the district - including Sharada and Bagchaur Municipalities, and Tribeni, Kumakh, Kapurkot, Chhatreshwori, Siddhakumakh, and Darma Rural Municipalities - the work of installing poles and laying wires was initiated in 2023. by the construction company Shakti Crystal JV Dolakha.

Although the construction company initiated the work of installing poles and laying wires, the project has been stalled for nearly a year. The full electrification of the district has been disrupted because the Electricity Authority failed to provide the necessary materials to the construction company on time.

Out of the 54,000 households in the district, 69 percent currently have access to electricity, while 23,000 households are still without power. A budget of 100 million rupees had been allocated to provide electricity to these remaining families as well. Although the contract was awarded in 2023, the work has yet to gain momentum. The responsibility for the project was given to Shakti Crystal JV Dolakha. Due to the lack of electrification, residents in rural areas are still forced to rely on pinewood torches and solar lamps for lighting.

Although the construction company has installed poles under the full electrification program in some wards of Kumakh Rural Municipality, Ward Chairperson Shobhilal Basnet of Kumakh-4 stated that no poles have been brought to Baun Gaun and Tusare in his ward yet.

“Ward No. 4 needs 90 poles for various settlements. So far, the construction company has only installed 22 poles in the Seti Danda area, and that’s all. They haven’t shown any interest in bringing and installing additional poles,” he said. “We have been trying repeatedly to get in touch for more poles, but the contractor of the construction company is completely out of contact.”

He stated that due to the extreme negligence of the construction company, the work has been halted for nearly a year, causing difficulties for the local residents. Durga Bahadur Pun, Chairperson of Kapurkot Rural Municipality, said that although most of the 3,000 poles required to fully electrify all wards have been installed, the work of wiring and installing transformers has not been completed in many areas. According to him, 80 percent of the households in the municipality already have access to electricity, while only 20 percent are still waiting to receive power.

Similarly, although 40 poles were brought to some settlements of Sharada Municipality-7 nearly a year ago, the construction company has not made any progress since then. Ward Chairperson Lilabahadur Roka said that no one from the construction company has shown up since the poles were delivered. “After the poles arrived, the locals, hoping to get electricity soon, have already done the wiring in their homes. But despite repeated follow-ups, the work has not moved forward,” said Chairperson Roka.

Among the 23,000 households still awaiting electrification, about 21,000 households across eight municipalities - Sharada, Bagchaur, Kapurkot, Darma, Tribeni, Kumakh, Chhatreshwori, and Siddhakumakh - were planned to have 7,000 poles installed. So far, the construction company has installed only 5,100 poles.

Engineer Lil Darlami of the contractor company Shakti Crystal JV Dolakha stated that the construction work has been halted for a few months because the government has been unable to supply the necessary materials. However, he denied the claim that the project is stalled. “We have been requesting materials, but we have not received the items as per our demand,” he said.

Source: Kantipur