Kavrepalanchok. The BP Highway, which has been banned for vehicular movement during night time with the onset of monsoon this year, is to be opened for 24 hours from September 17.

A meeting of the security committee held at the District Administration Office, Kavrepalanchowk on Monday decided to open the road for 24 hours a day targeting the Dashain, Tihar and other festivals. According to the committee, the decision was taken as per the approved road safety action plan for the convenience of the passengers.

According to a notice issued by the Office on Monday, the movement of vehicles was completely banned at night from the third week of June.

Vehicular movement along the BP Highway from Dhulikhel of Kavrepalanchowk to Nepalthok bordering Sindhuli district was halted for 12 hours during the night due to the risk of floods and landslides during the monsoon.

Earlier, the operation of vehicles was banned for 15 days from September 30. The night vehicular movement was banned from June 20 due to risk factors but it was banned for 12 hours at night till mid-August.

Assistant Chief District Officer Sudarshan Shrestha said that the office has issued notices from time to time and called the public to stay alert by banning the vehicular movement in the mentioned areas of the highway for minimizing the risk of disaster-induced incidents as there is a risk of flood and landslide along the BP Highway.

Private and public vehicles were prohibited from plying on the BP Highway at night as it was high risk to travel on the BP Highway during the monsoon. Assistant Chief District Officer Shrestha said that the decision has been made to fully open the highway from September 15.

According to him, the vehicular operation has been halted earlier due to risk in several places along the Khurkot section of Sindhuli from Kavrebhanjyang of Kavrepalanchowk. Vehicles coming from Kathmandu to Kavrebhanjyang and those coming to Kathmandu were stopped at Nepalthok bordering Sindhuli.

Earlier, a meeting of the Inter-District Coordination Committee of the office-bearers of the security committee of Kavrepalanchowk, Sindhuli and Ramechhap districts had decided to ban road traffic on the highway from June 21 from 6:30 pm to 5:00 am and from 5:00 pm to 5:00 am throughout the month of August.

Vehicular operation was halted temporarily after landslides in September last year swept away the eight-km road from Chaukidanda of Kavrepalanchowk to Barshekhola of Sindhuli along the BP Highway. Out of the total 160 kilometers of the highway, floods and landslides caused damages in different places along the 34-km stretch from Khurkot of Sindhuli to Nepalthok and 50 kilometers from Nepalthok to Dhulikhel of Kavrepalanchowk under the third section.

The office has expedited the process of awarding contracts in four sections for the permanent construction of the damaged highway. Thousands of vehicles pass through the highway every day.