The Opposition Party has been requesting the government to include the construction of Kuri-Gongri to the Sherichhu bypass in the 13th Five-Year Plan. The Opposition Leader said this during a press conference yesterday. If constructed, the roughly 52-kilometre-long bypass is expected to reduce the travel time between Trashi Yangtse, Trashigang, Monggar and Pema Gatshel.
During the recent Parliament session, the Members of Parliament questioned the government on the plan to include the construction of the Kuri-Gongri to Sherichhu bypass in the 13th Five-Year Plan.
According to Opposition Leader, Pema Chewang, if the Kuri-Gongri Hydro-Electric Project materializes, a major stretch of the current road from the Kuri-Gongri confluence to Nganglam will get submerged in the river which will pose an inconvenience for commuters.
“Informally, also in my capacity as an opposition leader, I had a bilateral discussion with the Prime Minister requesting to consider the importance of the bypass. Even both parties have pledged to construct the bypass stating that this is the lifeline for the east.”
“We discussed the Sherichu-Gongrizomsa bypass in the Parliament and requested the government to include it in the 13th Five-Year-Plan. To this, the MoIT minister said that there is an opportunity to add it to the 13th FYP. We have also talked to ministers outside the Parliament session, and they said they will look into including it,” said Dorji Wangmo, Kengkhar-Weringla MP, Monggar.
“The construction of the Kuri-Gongri bypass was planned by the previous government. In a democracy, if we waste the efforts of the previous government, then the resources go to waste. The Detailed Project Report of the bypass is complete and has incurred a significant cost of over Nu 21 M. If we abandon it, these resources will go to waste,” said Kinzang Wangchuk, Dramedtse-Ngatshang MP, Monggar.
Meanwhile, the Infrastructure and Transport Minister told BBS that the purpose of a Detailed Project Report or DPR is to ensure that the project is well-planned, viable, and effectively managed from inception to completion. Therefore, the minister said, the expenditure incurred on the DPR is not wasted.
The minister said according to the DPR, the cost outweighs the benefit of the bypass. He added that constructing the bypass will cost at least Nu 5bn which is too expensive.
However, the minister said the government is exploring alternatives to construct the bypass soon.
Kinzang Lhadon
Edited by Phub Gyem
