House committee asks govt to probe into irregularities in Mid-Marsyangdi hydel

The Economic Committee of the House of Representatives has asked the government to form a high-level committee to investigate into the irregularities in the Mid-Marsyangdi hydropower project, the only major power project under construction in the country.

A meeting of the Economic Committee held on Monday after a field visit to the project site in Lamjung directed the government to form a probe committee within 15 days and initiate action against those responsible for causing huge losses to the project.

The committee also pointed out that changes in the structural design, frequent strikes and irregularities on the part of the contractors and the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) officials have not only caused huge losses to the project but has also delayed the project by years.

The 70MW power project launched in 2001, which was to complete in 2004, has seen frequent suspension of works due to variations in design and workers’ strikes. Initially, the cost of the power plant was estimated at around Rs 14 billion but the cost has already doubled up whereas the construction is unlikely to complete before December 2007.

The German Development Bank has provided 161m euros for the project, which has a German consultant firm, Fischtner Joint Venture, and a German civil works contractor, DDC-JV.

The Mid-Marsyangdi has proved to be the costliest hydropower project in Nepal. nepalnews.com mk Nov 27 06