Mayor of Ratnanagar offers free health insurance to poor, underprivileged families from his salary, benefits

Chitwan, April 23: The Mayor of Ratnanagar Municipality, Prahlad Sapkota, has offered health insurance to 37 poor and economically underprivileged households from his salary and benefits. The beneficiaries were selected on the basis of recommendations from concerned ward offices.

It is said that the insurance premium was covered Mayor Sapkota's salary and allowances that he drew in the past three months. 

Mayor Sapkota had also provided free health insurance to 200 households by using his salary, allowances and the amount received as tokens of love and appreciation. 

According to Mayor Sapkota, the municipality had launched a health insurance programme to insure almost 3,500 households annually but this has been halted after the Gen Z Movement of September 8 and 9, 2025. 

The municipality has a policy not to accept any of the goods as tokens of love at formal programmes. The cash equivalent to the token of love and appreciation that different organizations wish to offer is being deposited into the health section's fund of the municipality. The amount is used to provide free health insurance and other social activities. 

Prior to this, Mayor Sapkota had bought stationery goods and tracksuits for the students from a basic school in Ratnanagar Municipality-12 by utilizing his three months' salary. 

Sapkota is also providing scholarships to more than 100 students in the municipality.

He said that the municipality is planning to effectively run the health insurance programme targetting for underprivileged communities in the upcoming fiscal year. 

Likewise, a Health Treatment Revolving Fund of Rs 3 million been established in Cancer Hospital, Chitwan to support the needy citizens. The municipality has also by offering some other incentives to support the underprivileged patients through different schemes, including free blood bank service.  (RSS)