The Rapti Highway has been closed for six hours daily for a week from Wednesday to facilitate the widening and blacktopping of the Chorkhola-Ramri road section in ward 3 of Kapurkot Rural Municipality, Salyan.

The Division Road Office Dang and the Salyan District Administration Office issued a notice announcing the closure, citing that regular vehicle movement was disrupting construction work at the road section.

Dipendra Bahadur Bista, chief of the Division Road Office Dang, said vehicular movement had prevented effective progress along the four-kilometre stretch, prompting the decision to halt traffic from 11 am to 5 pm daily.

He added that ongoing traffic had also damaged completed work, leading to delays. The closure came at the request of the construction company to allow uninterrupted work during the day. Despite some progress after gravelling the road for blacktopping, issues persisted due to landslides during the rainy season and disruptions caused by limestone-carrying trucks heading to cement factories.

Chief District Officer Sabitra Pun said the road had been closed multiple times in the past with the aim of completing the project as soon as possible. She added that passengers had endured hardship throughout the year due to delays, and authorities agreed to a daily closure to expedite the process and avoid further inconvenience.

Pun urged small and essential vehicles to use the alternative Paiyakhoriya-Satabas-Kimchaur-Kapurkot road section and exercise caution. While smaller vehicles have been rerouted, passengers in larger vehicles have been affected.