Nepal witnessed two major air disasters in 1992, prompting the then government led by Girija Prasad Koirala to commission a survey to find an alternative to Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA). Of the eight sites proposed by the Nepal Engineering Consultancy Service Center Limited in 1995, Nijgadh was deemed the most suitable. A Korean company conducted a feasibility study in Nijgadh the same year and came up with a cost estimate of Rs 700bn. But things went nowhere for another 13 years.
In 2008, the government led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal revived the idea and decided to undertake the project under the Build Own Operate and Transfer (BOOT) model. Two years later, in March 2010, the Ministry of Civil Aviation signed a $3.55m contract with Landmark Worldwide, a Korean company, to carry out a detailed feasibility study. The company submitted its report to the government on 2 Aug 2011. But the plan stalled, again.
Then, in 2019, the Nepal Investment Board announced a global tender to build the airport. But the board’s attempt to attract foreign investors fell flat without the project’s Detailed Project Report (DPR) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports.
In its policies and programs, the current government announced a start of airport construction from the fiscal 2023/24. However, there are challenges galore. Over the years, there has been a strong opposition against the airport project, mainly around environment and other viability issues.
After the formation of the KP Oli led-government in 2018, the then Civil Aviation Minister Rabindra Adhikari had made the airport one of his priorities. But when the EIA report came out, the project became a major environmental concern. The report proposed cutting down 2.5m trees to make room for the airport, causing unprecedented damage to local flora and fauna.
Of the 80.45 sq km land allocated for the airport, almost 70 sq km are dense forests. Moreover, the proposed site is three to four times that covered by even the biggest airports in the world.
The latest Supreme Court verdict has directed the government to carry out a fresh EIA of the site and to ensure minimal environmental damage during project-development.
Top leaders of the ruling five-party alliance, including Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, recently pledged to build the proposed Nijgadh International Airport come what may. They even visited the proposed site. The Nijgadh International Airport project is also important because it is linked to other mega-undertakings like the Kathmandu-Tarai Fast Track and the Outer Ring Road. And yet, over the years, the airport plan has been marred by sluggish progress, increasing costs and a myriad other controversies.
The airport should have minimal environmental impact
Arjun Dhakal
Environmentalist
At issue here are not only environment and wildlife, but also other important things like DPR, EIA, budget, viability, feasibility, etc. In a national pride project, each of these things must be thoroughly studied.
One of the most sensitive but lesser-known issues is that the proposed area, which traverses a water corridor, receives excessive rainfall. Only last week, it got 225mm of rainfall in eight hours.
Even though all the major political parties are in the airport’s favor, none is interested in conducting a detailed study. The Supreme Court has instructed concerned authorities to start from the beginning, and this time, with all the resources and research, the project is likely to go ahead, finally. It is crucial that the airport be built with minimal damage to surrounding areas.
The government should also be clear about the airport’s purpose. What kind of airport are we talking about here? One aimed at handling cargo or passengers? No one knows for sure.
