Dhankuta Hospital to be upgraded to 100-bed facility

By Kabiraj Ghimire

Hiley, Nov. 7:  After 111 years since its establishment, Dhankuta District Hospital is being upgraded to a 100-bed facility. 

Originally opened as Trichandra Hospital in 1970 B.S., the hospital operated with 15 beds for nearly a century and is now being expanded to better serve the community.

After a long discussion on a 500-bed teaching hospital in Dhankuta, the current 15-bed hospital is being upgraded to 100-bed one instead. 

After Biratnagar was designated as the provincial capital of Koshi, the provincial government announced plans to build a 500-bed teaching hospital in Dhankuta. 

However, this plan was later retracted due to insufficient land availability for such a large facility.

The upgrade was formally announced by former Chief Minister Bhim Prasad Acharya on October 18, 2021. However, the services have continued at the 15-bed capacity until now.

The new facility is being built on  255 ropanis of land of the Agricultural Knowledge Centre and the Silk Development Programme. 

A budget of Rs. 400 million has been allocated for a five-story, modern and fully equipped building. 

The contract, signed on June 9, 2023, mandates completion by July 2026. 

Model Construction Pvt. Ltd. signed the contract to build the facility at a cost of Rs.252 million, excluding VAT. 

According to Hospital Development Committee Chairman Niran Tamang, Rs. 200 million has been allocated by the provincial government in the first phase. 

According to government standards, a 100-bed hospital requires specialists in paediatrics, gynaecology, mental health, internal medicine, chest diseases, orthopaedics, and ENT. 

Tamang informed that the building’s construction aligns with these standards.

“Our goal is to establish a hospital that provides specialist services not only for Dhankuta but also for residents of Bhojpur, Tehrathum, Sankhuwasabha, and nearby districts, making it a modern, fully equipped facility,” he added. 

Namuna Construction Pvt. Ltd., based in Biratnagar, is advancing construction work swiftly. 

The project is expected to be completed and handed over in the stipulated timeframe with current progress showing 19.8 per cent financial and 35 per cent physical completion, according to Managing Director Ramkumar Guragain. 

Structural work is ongoing, and the third floor will be completed after structural work wraps up this year.

Locals are enthusiastic about the progress, as many had grown disheartened by past delays despite multiple promises. 

Bigendra Yakkha, a resident, expressed relief, saying that a fully equipped 100-bed hospital would eliminate the need for people to travel to the plain for basic treatments.

“A specialist hospital in Dhankuta is essential,” added Yakkha. 

“Currently, even for general health care service, we are forced to go to the Tarai region. Once this is built, Dhankuta and neighbouring district residents will no longer have to make the journey to the plains,” he added.