Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee virtually inaugurated Medica’s cancer hospital in Kolkata on Thursday. The third in eastern India, after two other units in Siliguri and Ranchi, the facility would provide organ-specific cancer care.
Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim was the guest of honour. West Bengal minister Chandrima Bhattacharya, chief secretary Hari Krishna Dwivedi, principal secretary of the department of health and family welfare, Narayana Swaroop Nigam, and Dr Pankaj Chaturvedi, deputy director, CCE, Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai were present at the function among others. “As of now, there is no cure for cancer, but with proper treatment, patients can be provided with some comfort. This is a big hospital and I would like to congratulate everyone associated with the facility for starting something like this,” said chief minister Mamata Banerjee over a video call.
Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim was the guest of honour
After the inauguration, the mayor and other dignitaries were felicitated by the hospital management. “I had this perception that only the wealthy could avail the facilities at Medica, but once they approached me with their plan to do something for the common people, my perception changed. Now common people can get proper treatment here and for that, I would like to thank our chief minister Mamata Banerjee and the hospital management,” said the mayor.
“This hospital provides a dedicated cancer care facility and that reflects our commitment towards advanced healthcare in Bengal. With an investment of over Rs 250 crore and a potential to generate over 1,500 jobs, we now have a state-of-the-art 500-bed medical institution, offering advanced cancer care and multi-speciality modalities for holistic care,” said R. Udayan Lahiry, MD Medica Group of Hospitals.