Kathmandu. The runway of under-construction Suntharali Airport at Kotwada of Naraharinath Rural Municipality-1 in Kalikot district is being blacktopped at present.

The blacktopping of a 690-metre long and 60-mtere wide runway is aimed to be completed by mid-February next year, informed Nagendra Bista, chairperson of Narharinath Rural Municipality.

The construction of Airport started in 2042 BS. A tower for the Airport has been already built while construction process has picked a pace after a long hiatus, Bista said.

Baliraj Bista, a local resident, shared that the construction of Airport was delayed owing to various reasons such as a decade-long Maoist insurgency and recent COVID-19 pandemic among others.

According to him, the locals here are excited to board the airplane once the Airport is operative.

The Airport authority has aimed to bring the Airport into full operation within the current fiscal year. Gauri Parbati/ Shyam and Shankar JV has been awarded contract to blacktop the runway, cut the drain in the Airport area among others for which contract worth Rs 138 million has been awarded to them.