Performance Contract: Nine more national pride projects sign deals
KATHMANDU, JAN 14 -
The government has signed performance contracts with chiefs of nine national pride projects, including Kathmandu-Tarai Fast Track Road, Mid Hills Highway and Railway Construction.
Tulasi Prasad Situala, secretary at the Ministry of Physical Planning, Works and Transport Management signed the contracts with project managers on Sunday as per the government policy to make national pride projects’ works result oriented. The contracts were signed as per the spirit of Immediate Governance and Economy Reform Action Plan 2012 that seeks to enforce similar contracts in all national pride projects.
“We will sign similar performance contracts in other project related to hydropower, aviation and drinking water too,” said Krishna Hari Baskota, secretary at the PMO.
Each contract has set a detailed annual work plan with a target period for the project development. Based on the contracts signed, track opening of the Mid-Hills Highway will be completed in the current fiscal year and there will be blacktopping in some section of the 1,750km highway. Similarly, track opening on the 556km North South Corridor roads will be expedited. The Kathmandu-Tarai Fast Track will work on selecting investor to build the express road under the build-operate-transfer modality.
Similarly, Railway Construction Project will carry out a feasibility study for North-South railway linking Tarai and Kathmandu with Tibet, China besides continuing work on Mechi-Mahakali Electric Railway and five cross-border railway links with India. And Postal Road Project will distribute compensations for the land acquired, construct bridges and open tracks. In the first phase, the project will construct 678km road and also carry out upgrading work.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Secretary Sitaula expressed belief that work of the national priority projects would see progress as per the target set. The government has assured that the national projects would not face shortage of resources and work force.
“Obstructions to project work including protest is banned,” said Baskota. Each contract has set an annual work plan with a target period for the project development. The government had last week signed performance contracts for three irrigation projects—Sikta Irrigation Project , Ranijamara-Kulariya Irrigation Project and Babai Irrigation Project —under the Ministry of Irrigation.
Source: The Kathmandu Post
