HARIPUR, Nov 30: Due to delay in disbursement of funds by the provincial government, work on upgrading six basic health units (BHUs) in Haripur district has been delayed, sources in the Works & Services Department told Dawn. Construction of 210-bed district headquarter (DHQ) hospital has already been suspended reportedly due to shortage of funds.

Informed sources said that on the demand of people and as a result of correspondence on the part of local health authorities the provincial government had, in Sept 2004, earmarked Rs27 million for repair and maintenance of the BHUs of Kotnajibullah, Najaf Pur, Kakotri, Sera-e-Nehmat Khan, Kalinjar and Gali Amazai. However, according to the official sources, the provincial finance department had not yet released the said funds.

More than 40 BHUs were established in district Haripur in mid eighties to offer healthcare to the people of remote areas. However, 95 per cent of them run short of staff, medicines and other facilities.

The buildings of these facilities also need repair and maintenance because in many areas outer walls of BHUs have collapsed.

According to official sources the government had planned to repair buildings of six BHUs besides increasing their bedding and labour room capacity and providing other additional facilities. For this purpose the government had earmarked Rs27 million.

These funds, however, have not been released so far.

“It is only because of lack of interest on the part of elected representatives”, said Mr Tanveer, a local business man, adding that if the area MNA and MPAs had taken interest, construction of 210-bed DHQ hospital would not have been suspended 12 years ago.