Baglung, May 27 -- The strategic road linking Galkot in Baglung to Rum in Myagdi via Tarakhola would have been blacktopped four years ago had it been completed on time. However, the project remains incomplete due to the contractor's negligence, delays in budget release, and challenges in controlling landslides.

Out of the total 40-kilometre stretch, even the 11-kilometre section taken up in the first phase has yet to be completed. Although the road upgrading and blacktopping work has begun, only 78 percent of the physical progress has been achieved so far, said Chandra Bahadur Pun from the Infrastructure Development Office in Baglung. About 72 percent of the payment for the project has already been made. Once completed, this road will co...