Tatas set up cancer hospital in Kolkata
17 May 2011
Tata Sons chairman, Ratan Tata yesterday inaugurated the Tata Medical Centre (TMC), a cancer hospital set up at a cost of Rs350 crore, in Kolkata to help treat cancer patients from the east and northeast of India as well as Bangladesh.
The first phase of the project has space for 170 patients, with a provision for extending capacity to a further 150 patients, the company said.
The Rs350 crore funding for the project and an additional Rs40 crore corpus deposit has been provided by the Tata trusts, various Tata companies and Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata group.
The centre, situated at Rajarhat on the outskirts of Kolkata, is modelled around the renowned cancer-care institution Tata Memorial Hospital (TMH) in Mumbai. It will be led by its director, Dr Mammen Chandy and will house specialists from different parts of the world.
The institute has decided to earmark 50 per cent of the beds to provide free treatment for those who cannot afford it. ''The remaining 50 per cent of patients will be in the subsidised or paying categories, and the money that accrues will be utilised to support the institution. The rest of the centre's expenses will be covered by charitable donations,'' the company said.
The centre will also house a shelter, Premashraya that will provide free stay and food for patients and their relatives.