Myagdi. Myagdi: The road has been upgraded in Raghuganga rural municipality of Myagdi with the help of hydropower project. The road has been upgraded with the investment of five hydropower projects under construction in Raghuganga and in the final stages of construction.

Rural municipality chair Bhav Bahadur Bhandari said that the road connecting the center of the municipality, Mawaphant, has been blacktopped and the road connecting Mawaphant to Jhin, Pakhapani, Dagnam, Chimkhola and Kuinemang has been sloped in difficult places.

According to him, the commitment to upgrade the road used by the hydropower project as an access road has been implemented in the discussions of political parties, stakeholders and people’s representatives held in the coordination of the rural municipality in February and March.

People’s representatives and locals had protested against the neglect of upgrading the road used by the projects, non-disclosure of social responsibility amount and expenditure details. The 35.5 MW Chimkhola-Rahughat-Mangale and 21.3 MW Big Khola hydropower projects have been completed in Raghuganga.

The 40 MW Rahughat hydropower project, the 22.5 MW Borokhola ‘A’ and the 48.5 MW Upper Rahughat hydropower projects are in the final stages of construction. According to Bhandari, Tundi Power, the promoter of Upper Rahughat and Chimkhola-Mangale-Rahughat, has constructed slopes at various places at a cost of Rs 15 million on the Mauwaphant-Dagnam section.

“Tudi Power is preparing to upgrade the road connecting Jhin and Pakhapani via Mawaphant at an additional cost of Rs÷ 2.5 million,” said Bhandari, chairperson of the rural municipality. ’

The promoter companies of Chimkhola-Mangale-Rahughat, Borokhola and Upper Borokhola hydropower projects have constructed embankments at a distance of about 150 meters to control the erosion and flood of bagarkhola flowing through the foothills of Chimkhola village of Raghuganga rural municipality-7 at a cost of Rs 8 million.

The road connecting Chimkhola village, Raghuganga rural municipality-7 and ward no. 8, inhabited by about 200 households, was at risk due to the erosion caused by the flood in Bagarkhola. Raghuganga Hydropower, a subsidiary of Nepal Electricity Authority( NEA), has started upgrading the beni-Jomsom road from the rotating lake to piple-Mouwaphant-Bukal-dam site section at a cost of Rs 100 million, bhandari said.

According to the agreement signed by civil contractor Jai Prakash Associates with Raghuganga Hydropower, the construction of infrastructure has started by mobilizing an assistant contractor for the 11-kilometer access road. The road from Hamalchowk of Piple to Raghuganga Secondary School will also be upgraded under this project, bhandari said.

According to the rural municipality, an agreement has been reached to blacktop 80 percent investment of Raghuganga Hydropower and 20 percent investment of four other hydropower projects.