The reconstruction of Kasthamandap which was expected to be completed by mid-July is likely to be has been delayed due to the prohibitory order that was imposed to combat the second wave of the coronavirus.
Rajesh Shakya, Chairperson of the Kasthamandap Reconstruction Committee, said that the supply of Sal wood that is needed for the reconstruction of the monument had ceased during the prohibitory, which affected in meeting the deadline to complete the reconstruction. “During the lockdown, there was no one to cut the trees needed for the project and no available vehicle to transport the wood,” Shakya said.
“However, now the first batch of the needed Sal wood has arrived and the construction has begun. We are expecting one more batch of wood to arrive and that is when we can say when reconstruction will be complete,” Shakya said to TRN Online.
The UNESCO world heritage site which is believed to have been originally constructed somewhere in the 7th century was destroyed by a devastating earthquake in 2015. The structure that was majorly constructed out of Sal wood used to house traders travelling between India and Tibet in China.
The Kathmandu Metropolitan City has solely funded the reconstruction. The Department of Archeology had estimated the entire project’s cost to be around 198 million rupees around four years ago. “Until now the KMC has allotted 115 million rupees for the project. Very recently on 28th June, the KMC gave us 10 million rupees when there was a shortage of funds,”
A source requesting anonymity from Hanuman Dhoka Conservation Centre under the KMC said that during 2017-2018, 5 million rupees was provided for the reconstruction of the Kasthamandap. This was followed by a sum of 50 million rupees in the year 2018 – 2019, followed by another 50 million rupees in the year 2019 – 2020. Finally recently on 28th June, 10 million rupees was given for the reconstruction effort. “In total, we have allotted 115 million rupees until now,” he said.
It was estimated that the reconstruction of the Kasthamandap would eventually only cost 112 million rupees way below what the Department of Archeology had estimated.
Source : TRN,
