Kathmandu, Dec 1: The much-awaited programme of the government to establish basic health service hospitals in each local unit has begun from Monday.In a bid to ensure basic and quality health services to all the citizens, the government has started laying foundation stones to establish hospitals in all the local levels.
According to the government’s plan, hospital of five to 15 beds will be established in each 396 local levels across the nation under the mega campaign.Leaders of the ruling party, ministers and local level chiefs laid the foundation stones of 309 of the 396 planned hospitals in local levels on Monday.
While former Prime Minister and senior leader of the ruling Nepal Communist Party Jhala Nath Khanal laid foundation stones for two hospitals in Ilam, Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel laid the foundation stone for the construction of a 15-bed building of Bajrabarahi Chapagaun Hospital in Godavari Municipality of Lalitpur.
Speaking after laying the foundation stone, Minister Paudel said that there would be no shortage of resources in the construction of infrastructure in the health sector.He informed that the Ministry of Finance has secured Rs. 57.97 billion for the construction of 396 basic hospitals at all the local levels.
He said that the foundation stones were laid for the construction of basic hospitals at the local level as a grand campaign for the availability of well-equipped infrastructure, doctors, health workers and health equipment at the local level as per the fundamental right of the people to live healthy.
Stating that a 15-bed hospital can be built within the limit of Rs. 180 million, Finance Minister Paudel urged the local level leaders to complete the construction work within two years, to pay special attention to the cost, quality and timeliness of the construction of the hospital.
One week ago, the Ministry of Finance had given permission to the Ministry of Health and Population to move ahead with the multi-year contract process to complete the construction of basic hospitals having five, 10 and 15 beds within two years.
The Ministry of Finance has already sent Rs. 6.12 billion for the construction of basic hospitals at the local level.inance Minister Paudel informed that Rs. 560 million has been provided to each of the seven provinces for the construction of 50/50-bed hospitals to control of communicable diseases.
“As the construction of the hospital moves forward, additional budget is released. There will be no shortage of budget,” he said.Foundation stones for the hospitals to be built in all local levels were laid across the country on Monday as a campaign.Construction of all the hospitals in local levels will compete in two years.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Bhanu Bhakta Dhakal has said that the government performance has been tangible. Laying foundation stone for a communicable disease hospital in Bhartapur, Chitwan on Monday, Minister Dhakal said no local level in the country would be without a hospital.
“People can see development with their eyes, each local level will have at least a hospital,” he said.He said foundation stones for 309 of the proposed 396 hospitals were laid on Monday.The government has initiated to build hospitals as per the policies and programmes of the current fiscal year 2020/21 which envisaged that it would build 5 to 15-bed basic hospitals in all the local levels.
According to the Ministry of Health and Population, as per the basic health hospital laying foundation campaign,foundation stones were laid for more than 300 basic hospitals on Monday.he construction of all the hospitals will begin within the current fiscal year and will be completed within two years, said Madhav Lamsal, senior health administrator at the Ministry of Health and Population and Coordinator of the campaign.
According to Lamsal, 52 hospitals with five beds, 109 hospitals of 10 beds and 235 hospitals with 15 beds will be constructed across the nation.“The hospital building campaign is an exemplary in the health sector,” said Lamsal.Establishment of the hospitals at each local unit will be the successful implementation of the federal system, added Lamsal.
The government has allocated Rs. 80 million for building a 5-bed hospital, Rs. 110 million for a 10-bed hospital and Rs. 180 million for a 15-bed hospital.As per the governmeet’s plans and policy, 32 basic hospitals will be built in Province1; 20 in Province 2; 19 in the Bagmati, 53 in Gandaki, 60 in Lumbini, 28 in Karnali and 34 in Sudurpaschim. The local levels are responsible to build the hospitals by themselves.
According to Our Hetauda Correspondent, Chief Minister of Bagmati Province Dormani Poudel said that the improvement of health, education and other sectors was possible through the coordination of the three tiers of government. Laying the foundation stone for a hospital at Manahara Gaupalika, CM Poudel said that the constitution itself directs to work with the coordination and collaboration among all levels.
