Local transport entrepreneurs have cleared all the debris that had blocked the road and resumed supply of essentials to Jumla.
It has been learnt that the Bheri-Karnali Trucks and Tractors Entrepreneur Association (BKTTEA) spent Rs 2.8 million to clear the blockade. [break]
BKTTEA Chairman Subarna Khadka said that they had to take the initiative keeping in view possible short supply of essentials during Dashain and Tihar festivals and the government´s sluggishness in clearing road obstruction.
BKTTEA had started clearing the debris in the Surkhet-Jumla road two weeks ago. Landslides had damaged the 232 km road at 60 different points. “Local politicians did not cooperate with us,” said Khadka. “Even the locals protested against our efforts to clear the blockade arguing that our excavator damaged their crops. We had to compensate them.”
With the road reopened, the Jumla-Humla road project office has canceled its tender notice for clearing the debris. The office has now decided to upgrade the road by constructing gabion walls. The road, which was constructed at the cost of Rs 1.58 billion two years ago, has remained blocked most of the time since it connected Jumla with Surkhet.
Six people have died so far in bus accidents in this section of the highway.
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