Magh 8, Kathmandu. While the construction sector, which was at a standstill until May, has started to gain some speed, there has been a rush of stone, gravel, and sand. On December 20, when the price of other construction materials decreased and the environment for construction was created, the Ministry of Home Affairs ordered the closure of crushers that were operating illegally.
District administration offices across the country have shut down most of the crushers that are operating illegally after the Ministry of Home Affairs instructed to close down the unregistered and unrenovated crusher industries. Transportation has also been tightened.
Due to this, the construction industry has suffered during the main construction season. The contractors have also got the excuse to increase the contract price (cost) through the variation by delaying the work.
According to Rabi Singh, President of the Federation of Nepal Construction Professionals, most of the construction works are at a standstill due to the lack of gravel and sand.
As six and a half months of the current financial year are about to pass, the government’s capital expenditure is limited to 14.67 percent. The government, which allocated a capital budget of 3 trillion 80 billion, was able to spend barely 55 billion 79 billion rupees till Saturday. During this period last year, such expenditure was 13 percent.
This is the main season for construction work. However, at this time, contractor companies have started to inform that the construction cannot be completed within the specified time, saying that the government has banned the purchase and transportation of stones, gravel and sand for the development projects.
The construction companies have started making written claims, compensation and damages claims with the projects saying that the work has been stopped and the government will be responsible for it.
Major development projects have been affected, starting from the Kathmandu valley, which is being worked on slowly but slowly. From Road Department to Urban Development and Building Construction Department, Irrigation Department, Water Supply and Sewerage Department, Nepal Electricity Authority, Nepal Civil Aviation Authority, Local Infrastructure Department including State Government and Local Government Agencies and the contractor companies have stopped work due to lack of stone, gravel and sand in the projects. are
Works ranging from road maintenance to tunnel construction have also been affected. According to Director General of Roads Department Arjunjung Thapa, due to the police stoppage, it was not possible to take the crushed materials of the department and contractors to another place.
In the beginning months of the financial year, Kartik and November, there was a slight slowdown in the construction business. However, government projects are worried that the rate of capital expenditure will decrease due to this crisis, which has come as the rate of capital expenditure is increasing.
The Federation of Nepal Construction Professionals met Urban Development Minister Bikram Pandey, who is also a contractor, in his office at Sinha Durbar and drew attention to this problem in the construction industry.
Minister Pandey said that he is aware of the problems in the construction industry and said that there was a positive discussion in the Council of Ministers about solving the problems in the operation of the crusher industry.
As he said that the solution will be released soon, there is a possibility that the illegal crushers will be closed again as any planning and preparation is illegal, and when there is a shortage of gravel-sand, they will continue to operate secretly under the same guise.
In the past too, the government used to shut down crushers that were not registered and renewed many times and allowed them to run opaquely saying that there was a problem with the schedule.
This time, Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane also shut down the crusher in the old style. However, his opinion has not been clear about when, under what conditions and when he will be allowed to open or not be allowed to open until the criteria are met.
‘Problems in developing the environment’
Businessmen say that the government’s decision to close the crusher when the construction environment is being built will be counterproductive. In the recent days, the demand for bricks, cement, sand, ballast, sticks and cement was increasing in the market.
According to the outgoing president of Nepal Brick Manufacturers Association, Mahendra Chitarak, there has been a gradual increase in trade in the past. The painter said that currently the brick business is limited to around 40 percent and the businessmen have started more work for the production of bricks in the hope that the construction will speed up.
“Compared to a little earlier, the market has started to pick up speed gradually. “The demand has increased,” said the painter, “In the hope that the demand will increase further, the industrialists have started producing more.”
He said that although the market has fallen significantly compared to the situation after the earthquake, there are signs of improvement in the previous recession. According to the association, ita is currently being sold in the market at an average of 10 to 20 rupees per gallon.
According to Ganga Shree Supply Company, which sells bricks in Kathmandu Valley, the number one brick price in Kathmandu is Rs. 15 per unit. Similarly, the price of brick number 2 is 13 rupees. The company said that this price is the price including the shipping fee.
Due to the slowdown in the market, the price of bricks has decreased slightly compared to two months ago. Until the first week of November, the price of bricks was 16 rupees 50 paisa for number one, and 15 rupees for number two.
According to the company, after the government ordered to close the illegal crushers, now there is a shortage of gravel and sand. For a few days, the trade of stone, gravel and sand from Kavre, Dhading, Makwanpur and other areas to the construction area of the main city of Kathmandu has decreased drastically.
Due to the problems in production and transportation, although the price could not be fixed, until last week, the price of one tipper of sand was fixed at 25,000 rupees. According to Gangashree Supply Company, the price of prepared ballast is only 22,000 rupees per tip.
Earlier, the price of sand was 33,000 per tip and the price of gravel was 25,000, but the price has decreased due to the recession in the last financial year and the current financial year, the company said. This price is inclusive of transportation from Kavre and Sindhupalchok to Kathmandu.
Some improvement has also been seen in the trade of cement and rods, other important raw materials for construction. According to Dilliraj Pokharel, Deputy General Manager of Hruwasin Cement, there has been some improvement in the demand for cement in the market now.
He said that there has been some improvement in the business, which had previously fallen due to the lack of investable funds, but there was no significant improvement. “There has been some increase in sales because of the weather due to construction,” he said, “but there is not the amount of increase that should be.”
According to chain hardware business Rajesh Hardware, compared to the last two months, there has been some improvement in the business of iron rods and cement. According to Rajesh Hardware, as people increased their demand for cement and iron, the prices of these items also increased in the market.
Currently, the price of iron rod in the market is Rs 116 per kg. The price of cane, which was Rs. 109 per kg until one and a half months ago, has increased slightly with the increase in demand in the market.
Similarly, the demand for cement has also increased. The demand for both OPC and PPC cement is increasing in the market for some time now, the average price of OPC cement is Rs 720 and the price of PPC cement is up to Rs 620.
According to the Construction Materials Trade Association, the price of cement in the market may be slightly lower due to the different prices depending on the brand and the manufacturing company.
According to the president of the association, Manikaratna Tuladhar, there has been an improvement in the trade market of construction materials after the election. According to the rules of the market, some prices may have increased after the demand increased, Tuladhar said.
‘Now the business has increased in the market. Work is being done on private and government projects, there are problems in some projects,’ he said.
Singh, the president of Nepal Construction Industry Association, says that if the crusher is closed, there is a risk that the construction industry will return to its old state. Therefore, he says that the government should immediately play a decisive role in creating a construction-friendly environment.
“We should facilitate the supply of stone, gravel and sand by creating an environment that allows business to be done legally,” he says, “otherwise the construction business will collapse further.”
