By Bhotraj Rai
Okhaldhunga, Feb. 10: A provincial hospital is set to be built in Okhaldhunga in an effort to provide quality health service to the people of the district as well as its surrounding districts – Okhaldhinga, Solukhumbu, Khotang and Udayapur. That has made the people elated.

The locals of Manebhanjyang Rural Municipality, where the hospital will stand, are happy to learn that they are soon getting health service facility in their own area. They were compelled to reach as far as Kathmandu to get treatment even for a general health checkup.

The hospital is being built after a long wait, said Mohan Khadka, member of parliament of Province 1.
After being elected, we are now successful in making policy to provide quality health services in hilly region by establishing provincial hospital there, said Khadka.

The decision was made to establish three provincial hospitals at Panchthar and Dhankuta including Okhaldhunga, informed Khadka.
DPR has already been prepared for the construction of hospital at the municipality and 165 ropanis of land was provided by 25 locals.

“Locals have donated their land for the construction of the hospital,” said Khadka. They have donated land as per their capacity ranging from one ropani to 35 ropanis. In all, Rs.50 million-worth land has been donated, according to one estimate.

Arjun Kumar Gautam, a local and chairman of Hospital Land Management Committee, has donated a total of 35 ropanis of land, which has been registered in the name of the Ministry of Social Development of the Province.
The locals and the municipality have played coordinal role in providing land and DPR, said Sabita Rai, vice chair of the municipality.

According to Rai, the hospital will be established as a teaching hospital and the locals of the neighbouring districts will equally benefit as well.
The DPR of Rs. 2 billion has been prepared, according to which the project will complete within two years, said Khadka, describing the project as “a sustainable and pride project of the province government”.
At the initial phase, the 150-bed planned hospital aims to construct 50 beds.

Arjun Kumar Gautam, a local, said that people of hilly region are in need of quality health service and quality education. The locals here have not felt the presence of the government because of a lack of the health facility and education, said Gautam.

Meanwhile, health service has become easily available after the construction of basic health centre at Triyuga Municipality-13 in Udaypur.
According to Pashupati Chaudhary, ward chair of the municipality, the health service came into operation after the construction of a new building. The municipality had built the building from their own budget.

The centre is equipped with basic facilities, providing different health-related services. Earlier, in absence of a building, the centre operated from a room of the ward office.