Blacktopped roads in Baglung face sustainability issues

BAGLUNG: JULY 4 – Just two months passed since the blacktopping of the road at Painyupata of Baglung Municipality-13, but it began wearing off. It has been further contributed by the landslide from the above and monsoon rains.

The blacktop has left the ground at four locations. Damages are seen along the around 500-meters section of the road.

The road was tarred under the strategic road project of the federal government. The Road Division Office, Baglung said works had begun to restore the road.

Most of the roadways which were blacktopped in the final days of the current fiscal year have had the implications of floods and landslides. They have worn off and caved in.

Similarly, a road in Amalachaur of Baglung Municipality-13 is being blacktopped, but it has been reported on social media that the blacktopping of the road has already started leaving the ground. The Road Division Office denied that it could not be said the blacktopping got removed when it was underway.

A ten-kilometer section of Baglung Kushmishera Road at Balewa area was also blacktopped recently. But in less than a month, the road started getting uncoated at several points. In some areas, the flash floods have largely damaged the roads which were recently upgraded.

The blacktopped road at Bareng bazar has also been damaged by the flood for the first time. It has subsided at several points, increasing the risk of accidents.

Continuous rains and the construction of a playground near the road caused damage to the road, locals said. Likewise, pits have developed on the section stretching from Traffic Chowk of Baglung Bazaar to Ramrekha.

It was tarred recently and incessant rains since the evening when it was blacktopped largely damaged it. Locals complain that a sewage and drainage system was neglected while constructing the road.

-RSS