INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
KATHMANDU, DECEMBER 16With the successful completion of the 67-km long Mugu-Humla Link Road, Humla, Nepal's most
remote district, is finally linked to the country's formal road network.
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Built as part of the UK's flagship Rural Access Programme
Phase 3, the well-engineered motorable link road replaces a walking trail and is the longest road the UK has helped build in Nepal under
RAP3.
The road also crosses the highest altitude for any RAP road at Chankheli Pass which lies at 3,300m.MHLR includes four
bridges.Thirty-seven km of the road lies in Mugu, while 30- km lies in Humla district.The road was built at a cost of £10.6 million with UK
British Ambassador Nicola Pollitt said, "The successful completion of this project demonstrates that when local people, different spheres of
government and experts cometogether for a common goal, big changes are indeed possible
It is also a shining example of long-term strategic collaboration delivering the UK's green, resilient inclusive development objective for
Nepal."She also requested different spheres of the Government of Nepal to maintain the road adequately
As a result of this collaboration between the UK and Nepal, transportation costs have been reduced by sixty six per cent
Food prices have gone down as well - the price of a sack of rice has reduced by forty three per cent.Access to markets, health facilities
and schools have all been improved.The programme employed over 4,400 local labourers to build the MHLR road
More than 35 per cent of the workforce was women
In addition, the project also employed poor men and women to maintain provincial and local roads in Karnali Province
The road construction and maintenance under RAP3-MHLR project created about 12 lakh employment days, 40 per cent of which went to
women.Equal wage rate between men and women resulted in high confidence of women, breaking age-old discrimination in the region.MHLR bridges
and road will prove crucial in responding to inevitable natural disasters and health crises
MHLR has also planted 25 trees for every tree felled for the road and ensured quality for roadside retaining walls, including through
bio-engineering.According to British Embassy, MHLR has also helped local communities and the government to overcome job losses during the
COVID-19 pandemic by creating road maintenance jobs in Karnali Province.It also helped community fight the spread of the COVID pandemic by
distributing medical supplies, which helped the Karnali Province government deliver their infrastructure work in a safer environment.A
version of this article appears in the print on December 17, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
This article first appeared/also appeared in https://thehimalayantimes.com