Mahottari, July 11:

Ushering in of a federal democratic republic would be meaningful only when people feel the change, Minister for Health and Population Giriraj Mani Pokharel said today. He also pledged to increase the access of people to health services.

Pokharel said this while laying foundation stone of the in-patient building of a hospital in Jaleshwor.

Medical personnel and physicians should ensure that every citizen gets proper access to health check-up and that proper family planning programmes are implemented and contraceptive devices are easily accessible to the people to tackle the problem of rapid population growth, he said.

The government has allocated a fund of Rs 617 million for construction of the building, said Raj Kishor Pandit, head of Mahottari district public health office.

The Health Ministry plans to turn the building into a 50-bed hospital and construction would be completed by the end of year, Pandit added.