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Glocal Healthcare Pvt Ltd, a Kolkata-headquartered and private equity-backed rural hospital company, has planned a Rs 400-crore project for 50 new units across six States.
Sabahat S. Azim, CEO and promoter of Glocal, told Business Line that the ambitious project would be funded by both debt (65 per cent) and equity (35 per cent).
“We expect the project’s financial closure by February. We are negotiating with a few banks for the long-term debt fund,” he said.
Glocal, which currently runs five affordable rural hospitals in West Bengal, would locate the new units in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha.
Each hospital will have 100 beds built on 15,000 sq.ft. with a G+6 structure and will have medicine, surgery, gynaecology, paediatrics, critical care and emergency, orthopaedics, ophthalmology, ENT and dental departments.
Mix of PE funds, debt
“We will put Rs 60 crore in equity in Glocal. Another Rs 60 crore directly in each hospital, as a subsidiary of Glocal. The equity will be raised from a mix of investors including the current PE funds Sequoia and Elevar; though we will try to broadbase the investor pool. The remaining Rs 280 crore will be debt. SIDBI has already committed funds. We may add a couple of banks to the list of lenders,” the CEO added.
The units will also have a 24-hour a pharmacy and a lab each with biochemical, immunological, pathological, microbiological test facilities. Histopathology will be done over tele-pathology network.
The other facilities would include 16-bed ICU, 4-bed NICU, three full-fledged OTs, maternity suites, delivery rooms, USG, colour Doppler, echocardiography, TMT, ECG, ABG, dialysis, radiology, image intensifier, endoscopy and laparoscopy.
Land acquisition
For the new units, Glocal is close to obtaining land at Katwa in West Bengal; Siwan in Bihar; Jeypore in Orissa; Lucknow and Sitapur in UP.
It is also in the process of acquiring land for other proposed units.
The new project is expected to be in operation in the next 18 months.
>jayanta.mallick@thehindu.co.in
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