Kathmandu, July 16: The contractor responsible for upgrading the cricket ground at Tribhuvan University in Kirtipur and installing floodlights is being penalized for failing to complete the work on time. As per the agreement, a daily penalty is being imposed for the delay.

According to the contract, the contractor is required to pay a daily penalty equivalent to 0.05 percent of the total project cost, which amounts to more than Rs 200,000 per day, the Ministry of Urban Development stated.

Chakrawarti Kantha, head of the Federal Secretariat Construction and Management Office, said the contractor was officially notified on Ashar 30 (mid-July) that the penalty would be applied for missing the deadline.

“We informed the construction companies on Ashar 30 about the pre-determined penalty terms. They are now working while paying the daily fine. The penalty will continue until the project is completed,” he said.

Legally, the daily penalty can be levied for a maximum of 200 days, totaling up to 10 percent of the project cost. If the contractor still fails to complete the work within that timeframe, the company will be blacklisted.

The contract for constructing the stadium’s parapet was signed with BKOI KCDC BG JV, and for the floodlight installation with Bishan Ishwari JV, on Falgun 19 and 22 respectively, through the Federal Secretariat Construction and Management Office at Sano Gaucharan. The parapet construction was contracted at Rs 492.5 million and the floodlight installation at Rs 473.7 million.

The contractors had pledged to complete the work within a month. So far, 4,000 seats have been installed, and three out of six floodlight poles have been erected. Financial progress on the parapet work stands at 63 percent, with physical progress at 77 percent. For the floodlight installation, financial progress is at 29 percent and physical progress at 45 percent.

People’s News Monitoring Service