The district health department has decided to increase the number of beds in rural hospitals in South Dinajpur district in 2021. As part of the plan, 130 beds are being added in block hospitals and health centers in the district, officials have said, adding that the services being provided by rural hospitals and health centres across the district are being “streamlined” and made better.

According to health officials, they have already been given the approval to add the beds and that the project will start by January 2021.

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According to the district health department, there are eight block hospitals in the district and two hospitals in Balurghat Sadar and a sub-divisional hospital in Gangarampur, and that they are crowded with patients throughout the year. “Due to lack of beds in rural areas, the hospitals there often refer patients to the district or sub-divisional hospitals for treatment.

To overcome this problem, the district health department is set to provide additional beds and further improve on the health system in rural areas of the district,” a health official said. Two more hospitals, one at Gokarna in Harirampur block and the other at Basuria in Gangarampur block have been added to the list of rural hospitals, while these hospitals will have a total of 20 beds.

“Apart from this, 30 more beds have been provided in the Kumarganj Block Hospital and 40 in the Kushmandi Block Hospital. Thirty new beds are also being added in the Bangshihari Block Hospital and 10 more in the Badalpur health centre in Bangshihari block. In total, the rural and block hospitals are set to get 130 additional beds,” the official said.

“There was a demand for additional beds in several rural hospitals and health centres in our district. Some beds have already been provided earlier.

However, in the beginning of the New Year, 130 new beds are being provided in some hospitals and health centres, so that the people get good services in those rural hospitals,” Chief Medical Officer of Health of the district Dr Sukumar Dey said. “The idea behind all this is to improve the overall healthcare system of the district in the coming year,” Dr Dey added