Rukum East, September 21
An oxygen plant installed at Rukum East Hospital to address oxygen shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic has failed to operate as expected even five years after its installation.
Although the hospital has an oxygen production plant, it currently has to bring oxygen cylinders from other districts, including Pokhara and Bhairahawa, whenever patients require oxygen. The plant, installed at a cost of millions of rupees, has raised questions over the return on government investment as it has not been operating regularly.
The Ministry of Health and Population allocated Rs 7.5 million in the fiscal year 2021/22 to install the oxygen plant at Rukum East Hospital. According to hospital records, the plant was installed through a tender process at a cost of around Rs 7.2 million.
At the time of installation, the plant was said to have the capacity to fill 30 to 32 cylinders, each with a capacity of 40 litres, per day. However, the hospital now has to bring cylinders from outside whenever patients require oxygen.
Acting Medical Superintendent Dr Krishna Kharal said producing oxygen at the hospital would make it easier to provide treatment services.
“It would be much easier if we could produce oxygen here,” he said. “The number of patients is increasing, and we have to bring cylinders from outside when needed.”
Plant damaged by landslide
The oxygen plant was damaged by a landslide triggered by continuous rainfall on July 5. According to Dr Kharal, stones and soil stockpiled during road construction in Sisne Rural Municipality-5 were washed away by rainwater and damaged the plant.
He said the landslide completely damaged the plant’s booster and partially damaged other components. As the plant was damaged by stones and soil stockpiled during road expansion, the hospital has initiated the necessary process to seek compensation from the agencies and construction company involved in the road project.
He said the hospital had also coordinated with the District Police Office, Rukum East, regarding compensation and that the police had initiated the necessary process.
Dr Kharal said the plant is currently unable to produce oxygen because of the damage caused by the landslide.
“I have been here for around 15 to 16 months. We produced oxygen from the plant for about five to six months, but we could not continue production because the electricity supply was not regular,” he told Onlinekhabar. He said the hospital also lacked a skilled technical team to operate the plant.
“Operating the plant using a generator is expensive. It is cheaper to bring oxygen from outside than to produce it this way,” he added. Local Krishna Khadka said the oxygen production equipment, pipelines and pressure-system structures at the hospital premises were lying unused. “Not being able to regularly operate a plant built by spending such a large amount of money means wasting public property,” he said.
Administration preparing to relocate plant
After the oxygen plant at the hospital was damaged by runoff from the road connecting Sisne Rural Municipality-5 and Rumalbara, the hospital submitted an application to the District Administration Office. Chief District Officer Kopila Rai said the administration subsequently wrote to Sisne Rural Municipality.
According to her, preparations are underway to relocate the oxygen plant from the risky location to a safer site and bring it back into operation. She said coordination was being carried out for the required electricity supply and technical manpower.
“The oxygen plant is located in a risky area, so preparations are underway to relocate it to a safer location and bring it into operation,” Rai told Onlinekhabar. “We are coordinating with the concerned technical team for the required electricity supply.”
Rural municipality pledges support
Sisne Rural Municipality Vice-Chairperson Gopal Reule said the plant had not been completely destroyed by the runoff during the monsoon.
According to him, the plant had not been in regular use for several years. “It is not that the runoff during the rainy season completely destroyed the plant,” Reule told Onlinekhabar. “The plant had not been in use regularly for the past few years. I understand that the police prepared a report regarding the damage caused after runoff came down from the road.”
He said the rural municipality would provide necessary support because the oxygen plant was not only hospital property but also connected to healthcare services throughout the district. “This is not something that the rural municipality alone can build or look after; it is a shared responsibility,” he said. “Therefore, the rural municipality has mobilised workers to remove the soil accumulated around the plant.”
Cleanup underway
According to Dr Kharal, cleanup work at the oxygen plant, which was damaged by the landslide, has been ongoing for the past few days.
He said stones and gravel accumulated around the plant were being removed.
According to him, the concerned parties are removing the soil and debris deposited around the oxygen plant by the landslide, and the cleanup work is expected to be completed within a few days.
