A hospital building in ward 3 of Tilathi Koiladi Rural Municipality, Saptari, has remained idle for over a year and a half since its completion.

The three-storey facility, built at a cost of Rs140 million, was completed on April 26, 2024, under a contract signed on May 4, 2022, but remains non-operational.

Local representatives have shown little interest in managing the hospital and have not formally taken charge of the building.

The Urban Development and Building Construction Project, Rajbiraj, said it has repeatedly urged the rural municipality to take control, but its requests have been ignored. “We have sent multiple letters requesting handover since the project’s completion, but local representatives keep delaying,” said project chief Surendra Kumar Sah. “Running the hospital is the municipality’s responsibility, yet the building remains unused.”

Sah added that if the municipality continues to stall, the matter will be reported to the District Administration Office and, if necessary, to the relevant department and ministry. The hospital, featuring 42 rooms, a 150 kVA transformer, and a 126 kVA generator, has been maintained by the construction company since its completion.

Company representative Binod Kumar Yadav said the delay has caused a financial strain. “Even after completing the work, we have had to pay security guards for over a year,” he said. “There has been no clear communication. We don’t understand their intentions.”

Rural Municipality Chair Arun Kumar Mandal blamed budget constraints for the delay. “Running the hospital requires at least two staff for immediate maintenance, but we had no funds at the time,” he said. “We now plan to open the facility from mid-April.”