CHAUTARA: A breakthrough has been achieved in the tunnel construction work of the much-hyped Melamchi Drinking Water Project along the Ambathan-Gyalthum section.

Information Officer at Melamchi Drinking Water Development Committee Rajendra Panta said that after two explosions at the final point of 8.3 kilometre (km) long tunnel of the section, the tunnel was broken through on Friday midnight.

Panta added that walls of the tunnel are being plastered after boring through the tunnel section.

Out of the 27.5 km long tunnel from Ambathan of Helambu Rural Municipality in Sindhupalchowk district to Sundarijal, only 450 metres of tunnel construction work is now remaining from Gyalthum to Sindhu.

The expected timeline for the completion of remaining work is around three months. Target has been set to complete the work by March 2018.

The 9.5-km tunnel from Sindhu to Sundarijal - the longest section of the 27.5-km tunnel - was completed last year.

The construction of the tunnel, with 80 per cent financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), is likely to cost Rs 10.65 billion excluding VAT.

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