Construction of a cycle track around Rara, the country’s largest lake in Mugu district, is moving at a snail’s pace.

With the objective to promote tourism, the Karnali provincial government in 2018 planned to construct the cycle track and released the budget. But the budget got frozen for two consecutive fiscal years since work on the project couldn’t be initiated due to a delay in obtaining permissions from the Rara National Park and the provincial forest ministry.

The provincial Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forest and Environment released a Rs452.9 million budget in the fiscal year of 2021-22 for infrastructure development in the Rara area. The division forest office in Mugu signed a project agreement with Khani Thodung Caravan JV to construct the cycle track around the lake the same fiscal year.

As per the agreement, the contractor has to complete the development project by July 2026. The company started the construction work a year and a half ago. The authorities concerned and the local people are worried about the timely completion of the project as the construction work is under way at a snail’s pace with frequent disruption.

“The cycle track construction is underway, but very slowly. Less than 30 percent work has been completed so far, casting doubt for the timely completion of the project,” said Amar Shah, the chief of the Division Forest Office in Mugu.

The underconstruction cycle track is 14 kilometres long. As per the project agreement, the construction company should sole stones first of at least 15 cm thickness, add a plain cement concrete layer of 10 cm and then pave the track with stone slates.

According to the Division Forest Office, the construction company received Rs80 million as advance payment, but it could not complete the work worth that amount as well. “We urged the contractor time and again to expedite the work, but the construction company delayed work under various pretexts,” said Shah.

The construction company is also accused of not coordinating with the Rara National Park while carrying out construction work in the park area. The national park office is unaware about the construction company, who are the workers, and the progress in the construction work. “The contractor has not coordinated with us. We don’t know about the construction company and their work,” said Jayahari Dhital, information officer at the Rara National Park.

The Karnali government touted the cycle track project as a pride project of the province. It is believed that the visitors, both domestic and foreign, cycle around the Rara lake and enjoy the pristine beauty.

However, the local people and tourism entrepreneurs are worried over the delay in constructing the cycle track and other infrastructure to promote tourism in the area. “We were happy when the provincial government announced its plan to construct a cycle track around the lake. But it is uncertain when the development project will be completed,” Devikrishna Rokaya, a tourism entrepreneur of Murma village, expressed his concern.

The contractor, however, promises to complete the cycle track on time. “The construction work has been disrupted due to the cold in winter. We will soon resume the work and complete it within the deadline,” said Chandra Thakali, representative of Khani Thodung Caravan JV.

Situated at an altitude of 2,990 metres, and spread out across 10.8 square kilometres, Rara frequently tops the charts as one of the most beautiful tourist destinations to visit in Nepal. Many tourists visit the area despite the lack of tourism infrastructure. Rara has been a major attraction for domestic tourists over the past few years.

Around 11,000 domestic tourists visited the Rara area in the last fiscal year of 2022-23. Every visitor who has been to the lake comes back with a “once-in-a-lifetime” experience and numerous, tempting stories, mostly singing the glory of this magnificent lake.