Kolkata has potential to be developed as a major medical tourism destination in South Asia, Debashis Sen, Principal Secretary of the Urban Development Department, West Bengal, said.
“There is great possibility of turning Kolkata into a health tourism hub for South East Asian countries, Bangladesh and Nepal, with the rapidly growing healthcare infrastructure in the city,” Sen said. He was addressing the inauguration of exhibition and conference on healthcare infrastructure and construction industry, organised by Confederation of Indian Industry here.
According to him, the State Government has allotted land to a few such upcoming ventures including Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Shankara Nethralaya, a global organ transplant hospital and certain other speciality hospitals at Rajarhat New Town.
Sen added that Tata Memorial Centre for cancer research has already come up at Rajarhat as one of the major healthcare facilities and that a hospital for cardiac patients is under construction. Land has also been allotted for the development of a trauma care centre and school of paramedical science, he said.
Exhibition
The four-day CII exposition, “Nirmaan and HealthInfra 2012”, will remain closed on August 17. According to a CII spokesperson, nearly 50 exhibitors in healthcare space will showcase their products and services – infrastructure and equipment – at the exhibition. It will also have an ‘architect’s gallery’ representing works of various architects from Kolkata.