Home > About Town > Amo Chhu project eyes foreign investment

Amo Chhu project eyes foreign investment

22 December 2009

After two years of delay, the cabinet secretariat has directed the Ministry of Works and Human Settlements to explore possibilities of foreign investments to implement the Ammo Chhu land reclamation project in Phuentsholing.

Phuentsholing Thrompon Kunzang Norbu said the project implementation was delayed due to lack of funds and the parliamentary elections.

“We presented the project to the new government in 2008, and it was agreed in principal that the project was viable and it should be implemented,” said Kunzang, adding that the government had not specified the funding until now.

Because of the delay in implementing the project, he said there could be change in design because of the change in river morphology and profile. “We are worried because the quantity of work also may change,” said Kunzang exemplifying that the depth of excavation could change in order to maintain the original design.

He said it was high time to start the project as the river could cause floods during the monsoon and damage properties near the left bank of the river. “Last year, we had to spend around Nu 2 million for dredging to divert the river as it could have damaged the sewage plant.”

However, Kunzang said that what was dredged in the previous year had been filled once again because of which the river could be unpredictable during monsoon.

“Now we don’t know what will happen during the next monsoon as the river is further meandering towards the town,” he said.

Tashi Norbu, a scrap dealer living near the Toorsa bank, said one of the main reasons why the river spilled over to the left bank was due to sand and stone quarrying in the area. “Most big projects take raw materials from Toorsa because of which the river starts flowing towards the town in summer,” he said.

He said he spent Nu 800,000 in building a wall to reclaim 40 decimals of land but half of it was washed away during monsoon. Out of the 40 decimal land, he is now left with 25 decimal. However, MoWHS Secretary said the ministry had not received any directives from the cabinet.

The total cost of the project was estimated at Nu 3.491 billion. Nu 29.08 million, donated by DANIDA, was spent in conducting pre-feasibility study and detailed engineering and design of the project.

The project, which was aimed at reclaiming 350 hectors of land by diverting the Toorsa river, was conceptualized in 2005.

The project is not only expected to safeguard lives and properties in Phuentsholing but also cater to the growing trend of rural-urban migration.

By Pushkar Chhetri

Ratings: 1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars
Loading ... Loading ...
Email this page Email this page     Print this page Print this page    

Posted by Bhutan Observer · Filed Under About Town 

Comments

Leave your comment





Note: Comments are moderated by Bhutan Observer, and may not appear until they have been reviewed and deemed appropriate for posting.

Bhutan Observer is Digg proof thanks to caching by WP Super Cache