BIRGUNJ, June 2: The plan to bring Birgunj Integrated Check Post (ICP) along Nepal-India border in Alau of Parsa has been delayed due to delay in construction of access road.
The ICP was expected to end administrative hassles in import/export trade by harmonizing working procedures in customs offices of Nepal and India.
The ICP in Nepali side is spread over 115 bigaha, while the check post in the Indian side is sprawled over 110 bigaha.
Narrow road delays ICP operation
The 100-feet wide exit road from the ICP has already been built. But the 800-meter road to connect the exit road with the six-lane Hulaki Rajmarga is very narrow and not in a position to facilitate movement of big cargo vehicles, Om Prakash Sharma, president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce and Industries, said.
Sumit Rauniyar of Pappu Construction, which has won the contract to build the road, says that land acquisition for Hulaki Rajmarga should be complete first.
The existing road between Sirsiya Chowk of Hulaki Rajmarga and ICP is only 30 meters wide. The plan is to expand it to 50 meters.
Locals are refusing to vacate the 10-meter wide stretch on either side of the 30 meters road, according to Karna Singh Thapa, an engineer with the Trade Route Expansion Project (Birgunj to Pathalaiya).
According to local industrialists, ICP also lacks needful space to build godown. “We have repeatedly drawn the attention of concerned official toward the need to build godown for to facilitate trading. But nothing has been done so far toward addressing our demand,” Pradip Kedia, former president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce and Industries, said.
The ICP on the Indian side has already come into operation. About 90 percent works of the ICP on Nepali side has been completed so far.
