New Projects

Jubilant Organosys Ltd Plans 400-bed Hospital in Howrah

Four more hospitals with 100 beds each will be set up in the district towns of Burdwan, Kharagpur, Mankundu and Haldia

Dr Satadal Saha

Kolkata-based Jubilant Organosys Ltd has firmed up plans to set up five more hospitals in West Bengal in a hub-and-spoke model. Under its subsidiary Jubilant First Trust Healthcare Ltd (JFTHT), Jubilant Organosys Ltd runs the 120-bed Jubilant Kalpataru Hospital in Barasat and a 50-bed hospital under PPP arrangement with the Zilla Parishad at Berhampore, Murshidabad.

Now, the group has decided to set up a super-speciality hub hospital with 400 beds in Howrah. The hospital coming up on Kona Expressway, close to the Second Hooghly Bridge, is coming up on a 10-acre land. The built-up area of this hospital would be over two lakh square feet. Also, four hospitals with 100 beds each will be set up in the district towns of Burdwan, Kharagpur, Mankundu and Haldia. These hospitals, spread over five acre each, has built-up area of 50,000 square feet each.

Says Dr Satadal Saha, Director & CEO, JFTHT, "The total outlay for this project is Rs 200 crore. The funding is by a mix of equity (promoters' contribution) and debt." The respective lands for the projects have been acquired. The architectural drawing and design work are in progress. The construction of the projects is expected to start by end of this year and the entire project will be completed by 2013. There will also be two nursing schools: one at the existing hospital in Barasat and another at the upcoming Howrah project .

The vision behind these projects, according to Dr Saha, is creating a low-cost high-quality healthcare model, based on leadership from a team of doctors, sound clinical and administrative practices, innovations in the delivery segment and a foundation of strong ethics where the patient is dealt with transparently and with dignity. Asked for the reasons for choosing these areas, he said, "The location selection is on the basis of historical experience of the group of doctors, validated by specific demand analysis and population profile studies. The essential factors have been ease of communication from Howrah (the location of hub hospital), infrastructure and accessibility, quantum of currently available health infrastructure in those areas vis-a-vis public demand, inclination of local Government authorities for PPP projects in healthcare and locations where people from adjoining districts also congregate for accessing healthcare."

He added that the spoke hospitals in the districts are expected to be the most modern healthcare provider. For the hub hospital in Howrah, cutting-edge technology in cardiac surgery, radiotherapy, bone marrow transplantation are likely to be the key differentiator. In full strength, the total employment (direct) will be about 3,000, including a nursing strength of about 1000, administrative strength of 400, technical strength of 200, doctors (consultants and junior doctors) about 300. "The employment generation will be mainly from the lower socio-economic strata, with a rural/semi-urban background," says Dr Saha. Meanwhile, the hospital in Murshidabad is also in the process of expanding from 50 to 100 beds.

Rita Dutta