Hyderabad doctor pledges Rs 350 crore for medical field

HYDERABAD: Global Hospitals Group’s founder Dr Ravindranath Kancherla on Tuesday announced that he will be pledging 70% of his wealth, amounting to over Rs 350 crore ($50 million), for building a not-for-profit medical education, research and innovation institute in Hyderabad.

The 65-year-old gastroenterologist plans to set up the project, comprising a medical university and hospital — to be called Global HealthTech University & Innovation Hub (GHUIH), with a focus on multidisciplinary research and innovation.

The medical university, which would include a 750-1,000 bed hospital, and the health-tech innovation hub would require an infusion of over $100 million over a period of seven years.

While Kancherla’s contribution will be able to take care of 50% of the capital requirements of the project, the remaining sum will be contributed by his friends from the medical, pharmaceutical and technology fraternity.

“GHUIH is being established in Hyderabad to provide a new model for sustainable development of medical infrastructure...This institution is first-of-its-kind in India and among few in the world. I have pledged 70% of my wealth for this cause and appointed executors for my registered will to ensure the project goes on stream despite any eventuality,” said Dr Ravindranath Kancherla.

Work on the building is expected to commence by the end of this year, said his younger brother Dr Ramesh Kancherla.

Ramesh pointed out that his older sibling has been mulling this project for a couple of years now as part of efforts to create an ecosystem for world class medical research in India and boost innovation in this field that would eventually benefit the common citizen.

Dr Ravindranath, who is considered an expert in surgical gastroenterology, was part of the team of Indian and British doctors that tried to revive BJP leader Pramod Mahajan after he was shot in his Mumbai home in April 2006.

The Global Hospitals founder also played a key role in establishing multi-organ transplant programmes including liver, heart, lungs, kidney and pancreases in India. He was also instrumental in popularising minimal access surgery in the country.