The Churiyamai Tunnel, the first of its kind in South Asia, will reopen to the public on Monday, following eight months of reconstruction. Situated near the Churiyamai Temple in Hetaunda Sub-Municipality-15, the tunnel has been renovated and will be handed over by the provincial government for public use.
Once the handover is complete, the sub-municipality plans to open the tunnel for visitors. The municipality has established a new policy for its operation. According to this policy, entry fees will be as follows: 50 rupees for Nepalese visitors, 120 rupees for foreigners, 20 rupees for students, and free admission for children under five, the elderly, and people with disabilities.
The renovation of the tunnel was finished last May, funded by the Bagmati Province government. Hetaunda’s mayor, Mina Kumari Lama, explained that the delay in the handover process prevented the tunnel from opening earlier. “Now that the handover is complete, the Churiyamai Tunnel will be open for public tours,” she said. After the transfer, the sub-municipality will pass management responsibilities to the relevant committee according to the operational guidelines it has created.
Churiyamai Conservation Committee President Prem Bhomjan expressed hope that once the tunnel is open, it will attract both local and international tourists. “Currently, people can only see the tunnel from the outside, as both doors are closed,” he said.
Originally built in 1917 AD during Chandra Shamsher’s time as Prime Minister, the tunnel had deteriorated, with a collapsed section posing a safety risk. Spanning approximately 225 meters, the tunnel was restored by the provincial government as a high-priority project. The restoration work was led by Dilli Jung Thapa, Nepal’s first graduate engineer. Puskar Raj Pokhrel, Director of the Bagmati Province Transport Infrastructure Directorate, noted that electric lights have been installed in the tunnel. The doors at both entrances have been shut for the past eight months.
A life-sized statue of Engineer Thapa, who designed the tunnel, stands near the structure. Thapa was also responsible for designing the road connecting Amlekhgunj to Bhimphedi.
Measuring 700 meters in length, 9 feet in width, and 10 feet in height, the tunnel was initially designed for freight transport. It served small vehicles for over a decade but ceased to be used after the construction of the Pathlaiya-Hetauda road.
The tunnel was built to connect Amlekhgunj in Bara with Bhimphedi, the former district headquarters of Makawanpur.
In his book Nepal, Dr. Tony Hagen recounts his experience of seeing the Churiyamai Tunnel while traveling through the area on October 24, 1950. He described the tunnel, located at the border between Makawanpur and Bara districts, as a remarkable man-made structure that left him in awe.
