IndiGo co-promoter Rakesh Gangwal inks pact with IIT-Kanpur to set up school of medical sciences, tech

IndiGo co-promoter Rakesh Gangwal on Monday signed a pact with IIT-Kanpur to jointly set up a school of Medical Sciences and Technology on the latter's campus.

Gangwal, an alumnus of IIT-Kanpur, will also donate Rs 100 crore to establish the college.

Besides, Gangwal will also be joining the Advisory Board of the school.

"It is a privilege to be associated with such a noble endeavour with my alma mater. I am proud to see that the institution that has produced thousands of leaders across various sectors is now paving the way in the healthcare sector. More than ever, healthcare is intertwined with technological advances and this school will accelerate innovation in healthcare," Gangwal said.

The school will be completed in two phases. Phase I of the project will include setting up a 500-bed super-speciality hospital, academic block, residential/hostel, and service block with a total built-up area of approximately 8,10,000 sq ft.

Phase I will also include setting up Centers of Excellence (CoE) for pursuing R&D activities in futuristic medicine.

This phase is tentatively planned to be completed over the next 3-5 years.

The Phase II of the project, which is planned to be completed in 7-10 years, will see the hospital capacity grow to 1,000 beds, expanding clinical departments/centres, research areas, the inclusion of paramedical disciplines, alternative medicine, hospital management, sports medicine, and public health programmes.

The school is envisioned in line with IIT Kanpur's endeavour to bring about a paradigm shift by merging medical research and technological innovations in the country, according to a release.

"We are extremely grateful for the generous contribution of Rakesh Gangwal. The proposed medical school will play an important role in driving IIT Kanpur's innovations in medical research and technology and catapult India into the global league of institutions that are converging medical sciences and technology to benefit humankind," Abhay Karandikar, Director of IIT Kanpur, said.