Following the government’s decision to move ahead with the construction of the much-awaited Sulichaur-Thawang road project in the district through tender process, the Nepal Army (NA) has crossed off the project from its list of priorities.
Following the cessation of the decade-long conflict, locals had been requesting NA, deployed in the district for poll security, to take on the construction project.
“The locals of Thawang and adjoining areas have submitted written requests, time and again, asking us to construct the road,” said Battalion Commander Binod Chand of the Devidutt Battalion of Nepal Army at Rolpa. Hinting that the government seems to be less concerned about the project being headed by the army, one of the officers at NA in Rolpa said on condition of anonymity that they cannot do anything about it without the approval of government.
In the absence of road facilities, locals of Thawang are compelled to walk at least two days just to reach district headquarters to avail government services like making citizenship certificate, registering birth, death and marriage, among others. Stating that seriously ill patients were the most affected due to NA’s pull out from the road project, local Resham Kumar Shah of Thawang said that they could have easy access to the Capital and other parts of the country if the road were to be completed on time.
Although the government has given continuity to the construction work on the road project by opening tenders, construction has been obstructed as contractors have failed to cut through the rocky terrain in Sirkyang Bhir at Seram. Only about 30 km of the road that spans more than 100 km has been opened till date. Due to the government apathy and delays in construction, the road which is pivotal for the development of the district has been waylaid for the past one and a half decade. Meanwhile, CDO Luk Bahadur Chettri, who has already reached Thawang with administrative and development related projects, said that the road construction would gain momentum once they are able to cut through the rocky terrain at Seram. “We are planning to conduct an interaction programme regarding the subject between the contractors and stakeholders soon,” he said.
The insurgency had claimed 33 lives in Thawang, leaving scores injured, maimed, disappeared and displaced. Although the government had brought in some programmes to turn Thawang into a model village, many of the locals have expressed their frustration over the government’s inability to make it inclusive.
nThawang village was the epicentre of the decade-long Maoist
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