Bhaktapur municipality brings into operation a 75-bed isolation centre

Kathmandu - The Bhaktapur municipality has brought into operation a 75-bed isolation centre for the treatment of its coronavirus infected citizens. The municipality has kept 10 COVID-19 infected patients in the isolation centre and the number is gradually increasing. Bhaktapur had transformed its multi-purpose building based in Brahmayani into the 75-bed isolation. Earlier, the municipality used to refer the infected people to the Kharipati-based isolation centre of the Nepal Electricity Authority and Bhaktapur Hospital.

“Our efforts to contain the virus spread is underway through it has been transmitted throughout the communities and families. The current situation is quite different from the previous one”, Bhaktapur mayor Sunill Prajapati said. “With the rise in the number of infection cases, we think merely relying on Kharipati isolation centre and Bhaktapur Hospital would not be adequate. So, we constructed the isolation centre on our own to keep the infected citizens for treatment”, he clarified.

A team headed by mayor Prajapati with Chief District Officer Humkala Pandey, Nepal Army official Shiva Prasad Poudel, Bhaktapur Hospital’s medical superintendent Dr Sumitra Gautam on Friday made an onsite visit to the isolation centre before it came into operation. The isolation centre which was constructed adhering to the government-stipulated criteria has separate floors for women, men and senior citizens. The upper stair has been managed to keep infected women while the second floor is for men.

The first floor will accommodate senior citizens, children and pregnant women whereas the ground floor will be used for administrative purposes, shared Isolation Management Committee coordinator Rabindra Jyakhwa. The municipality has arranged all the facilities excluding wearing clothes for the infected people in the isolation centre. The centre has made available the electric jug, wi-fi, extension wire for mobile charge, books and newspapers in each stair, Jyakhwa added.