Kathmandu: Optical fiber has been installed along 1,600 kilometers length so far under the Optical Fiber Backbone Network Expansion Project across the country.

Nepal Telecom Authority (NTA) had initiated the project with a goal of expanding optical fiber network within two years, but only 46.16 per cent of work has been completed till July 15.

The Nepal Telecom, which had got responsibility of laying optical fiber in province 1, 2 and Bagmati Province under the first phase, has completed installing the optical fiber in these areas.

As per the agreement, the NT has to install optical fiber along 2,083 kilometers in three provinces. Of them, it has laid fiber along 1,006 kilometers in five years. The NTA had given the responsibility to install fiber at 6,235 kilometers of mid-hill highway to three separate companies dividing the project in three sections.

Out of three sections, fiber laying work has been started, the work has not started yet. The NTA had signed agreement with Nepal Telecom on September 28, 2012 in order to lay fiber from eastern Nepal to Gorkha within two years under the first section.

NTA Spokesperson Santosh Poudel said that the Nepal Telecom had started laying optical fiber from mid-May 2019.

He shared the Nepal Telecom has given responsibility to five companies to lay optical fiber and purchase goods for the same in three provinces under the first section.