DM Healthcare to invest Rs.1,000 crore in India

DM Healthcare, a leading healthcare provider in the Gulf region, plans to invest Rs.1,000 crore in India in the next three years by setting up chain of hospitals, besides acquiring hospitals across India to boost the group's presence.

“Currently, we are setting up a Rs.1,500-crore multi-speciality hospital in Kochi where Phase-I of the project entailing investment of Rs.500 crore will be ready by 2013. Similarly, we are coming up with a medical college at Wayanad that included a 750-bed hospital, by investing Rs.150 crore. It is expected to start operations in 2012,” DM Healthcare Chairman Azad Moopen told this correspondent.

Similarly, the healthcare company that runs hospitals, polyclinics, pharmacies and diagnostic centres under the brand ‘Aster' and ‘Medcare' in the UAE, Qatar, Oman and Saudi Arabia, is also planning to acquire hospitals across India to expand its footprint. “We have already finalised deals in Kohlapur and Pune, while a new hospital is being planned for Nagpur — all in Maharashtra,” said Dr. Moopen, who belongs to Malappuram district in Kerala and has medicine from Kozhikode (Kerala).

DM Healthcare is also exploring options in Delhi and its adjoining townships to expand its operations.

“We have already launched ‘Aster-Eye Care', comprehensive eye care centre in Faridabad (Haryana), while we plan to open four new similar centres in Delhi and another 20 across India by 2015,” Dr. Moopen said.

Growing at 20 per cent a year, DM Healthcare's current revenue stands at Rs.1,000 crore, mainly from its Gulf operations, while the company sees earnings from India operations reaching Rs.350 crore in the next 2-3 years.

“We are eyeing great opportunity in the fast growing healthcare sector in the country. India has also emerged a major destination for medical tourism, particularly for those living in neighbouring countries, the Middle East and Europe…we want to tap this by providing best medical facilities,” Dr. Moopen said.

Dr. Moopen made his entry in India by setting up a 600-bed tertiary care Malabar Institute of Medical Sciences (MIMS) Hospital at Kozhikode in 2001 and later established 150-bed MIMS Hospital at Kottakkal in Malappuram in association with NRIs. He is the Chairman of MIMS Academy Trust that runs these hospitals.