KATHMANDU, June 9: The government has begun action against medical colleges operating more beds than their approved capacity, with plans to recover the additional revenue earned, the Ministry of Health and Food Safety said.
According to the ministry, around Rs 17.84 million in arrears (beruju) has been identified from such institutions, and preparations are underway to recover the amount.
Minister for Health and Food Safety Nisha Mehta said the government has started collecting outstanding dues from five years ago as part of efforts to gradually eliminate irregularities in the health sector.
Heed the medical students
“The process of recovering the excess amount has already begun, and other activities of these colleges are also being monitored,” she said.
She added that 11 medical colleges operating in Kathmandu and other parts of the country have added beds beyond their approved capacity and generated additional income, while paying taxes and fees only based on approved numbers.
According to the Office of the Auditor General’s report, this trend was flagged about five years ago, and the report recommended recovering the unpaid amount from the concerned institutions.
Based on the report, the ministry is now preparing to deposit the additional fees—calculated on the excess beds—as arrears into the state treasury.
Medical colleges, including Chitwan Medical College (Bharatpur), Nepal Mediciti Medical College (Lalitpur), Gandaki Medical College (Pokhara), Nobel Medical College (Biratnagar), and Nepal Medical College (Kathmandu), have been found operating extra beds since fiscal year 2019/20, and arrears from that period onwards will be recovered, Minister Mehta said.
