The Aspatalchok-Banjijump road section and other feeder roads at Kushma Municipality in Parbat are currently being upgraded. However, construction workers are facing problems in upgrading the road, as electricity poles are yet to be removed.

Around two dozen roads are currently being upgraded in the district. Most of the narrow and single track roads are being upgraded to a two-lane road. But the Parbat Distribution Centre of Nepal Electricity Authority has not paid attention to removing the poles, because of which the road expansion work has not gained momentum.

Officials at Kushma Municipality said around two dozen poles lie in the middle of the roads in Aspatalchok.

“Most of the electricity poles in the area were installed a long time ago. After the road expansion, they now stand in the middle. The position of these poles poses a grave danger to vehicles,” said Tara Bahadur Thapa, a resident of Kushma. “But the authority concerned has not done anything to shift the poles.”

Chitrakala Sharma, chairman of Kushma Ward No.5, said his office has been requesting the authorities to shift the poles to a safer location, but their demands have fallen on deaf ears.

“Two weeks ago, a tipper driver was injured when his vehicle collided with a pole along the Aspatalchok road. The poles cause minor accidents in the roads almost every day,” said Sharma.

According to the municipality data, around 200 electricity poles should be shifted from the road sections in the current fiscal year.

However, Lalit Narayan Chaudhary, chief at the Parbat Distribution Centre of Nepal Electricity Authority, said his office cannot remove the poles from the roads at once. “First, we have to set up new poles to remove the old ones. This process will be carried out slowly,” said Chaudhary. “The authority does not have a sufficient budget to remove all poles. The concerned local units and construction entrepreneurs should help us in the process.”