Damauli, Feb 25 : Byas Municipality in Tanahu district has commenced construction of municipal-level COVID-19 Hospital at Dumsichaur of Vyas Municipality-10 in the district.    
    
Nepali Congress senior leader Ramchandra Poudel laid foundation stone for the construction of 25-bed COVID-19 hospital today. Poudel argued that locals could avail medical treatment at their own locality thanks to federalism.    
    
He viewed that many people would succumb to COVID-19 if there was no local level rendering public services at local level. "As mandated by the constitution, public have begun availing public services from ward-level."    
    
Lauding the role of the local government in COVID-19 response and control, the senior democratic leader expressed his confidence that the COVID-19 Hospital would render quality healthcare services to the locals.    
    
Similarly, District Coordination Committee Chief Shanti Raman Wagle shared that Vyas Municipality has been significantly contributing towards prevention and control of COVID-19.    
    
The new hospital was going to be built acknowledging the need for a separate hospital to treat the infected and suspected COVID-19 patients as variants of COVID-19 continues to emerge and spread.    
    
The hospital is going to be constructed at accost of Rs 8.9 million and deadline has been given to the construction company to complete it within eight months.    
The COVID-19 dedicated hospital will have residential facility for the health workers, said Pramod Soti, Chief of Department of Health at Vyas Municipality.    
    
A PCR lab has already been set up in the locality which renders services for free of cost.