How does it look to blacktop the roads during rainfall? Surely, it appears out of control. But every year, during the last week of Ashar, such scenes are common in our country. These “monsoon developments” do not reflect real progress but rather negligence.
In the last week of Ashar, new blacktopping was done on roads like those in Dovan Bazaar on the Siddhartha Highway. But this new blacktopping started to peel off within a week. Roads repaired in places like Bhalukhola, Dheryani, Pipaldanda, and Sita Pahad also began to deteriorate quickly. The same issue was seen in Kathmandu.
Ashar is the end of the financial year and also a month of heavy rainfall. But construction companies seem to prioritize payment processes over quality. This trend shows a lack of quality in development projects, causing the newly blacktopped roads to break within days.
This issue is not just limited to inconvenience. Poor-quality construction poses risks to public health and wastes public funds. It is worrying that a large portion of the limited capital budget is spent on low-quality work. Construction companies have a professional responsibility to complete the work on time and maintain quality.
The trend of “monsoon development” shows the negligence of both state bodies and construction companies. For the financial year 2080/81, the government allocated a capital budget of 3.02 billion rupees, but only 1.91 billion rupees was spent. Of this, 29% was spent at the end of Ashar.
Not all expenditures in Ashar were for low-quality work, but spending a large portion in the monsoon indicates a lack of planning. This undermines the constitutional and legal provisions made to prevent development work during the rainy season.
To address these issues, state bodies need to be more active in ensuring the quality of construction work. Construction companies must be compelled to complete work on time and maintain quality. There should be legal penalties or provisions for redoing the work at their own expense if they fail to ensure quality. Government processes need to be streamlined to avoid delays in payments.
Responsible individuals within state bodies should also be punished for protecting poor-quality work. Citizens should increase vigilance in their areas and oppose negligence. Ensuring quality in development would benefit citizens in the long term.
Efforts should also be made to reduce dust and the likelihood of accidents during road improvements. Addressing these issues can ensure better infrastructure and public safety.
