Health sector to increase upto USD 55 billion crore

Kolkata, Jun 11 (UNI) The Indian health industry is expected to grow from USD 27 billion crore to USD 55 billion crore by 2012, according to a CII McKinsey report.

Launching a state-of-the-art pathology laboratory here today, Dr Lal Pathlabs (LPL) Chairman and Director Dr Arvind Lal said the industry is projected to grow by 13 per cent per annum till 2012.

Besides the launch of two LPL diagnostic labs here, Dr Lal said seven such labs would be set up in eastern region, including Orissa and Bihar.

''We have planned to invest about Rs 30-35 crores for the other projects all over the country. The pathology market has increased in the last five years at an estimated CAGR of 20 per cent per annum,'' he said adding that LPL is going to have 50 more labs by March 2009.

The LPL would also set up an 82,000 sq ft lab in North Delhi by 2008.

Currently, LPL has 26 labs with the main lab and the R&D lab in New Delhi with hi-tech software system and satellite technology.

Talking about the importance of Public-Private-Partnerships(PPPs) in the health sector, Dr Lal said Tripura was the first in the country to have such a partnership. ''We expect the same from the West Bengal government soon as the state health minister is in a spree to make Kolkata the health hub of the country.'' Recently, the Hyderabad-based Global hospitals laid their foundation stone in the city and in the pipeline are the Tata Memorial Cancer Institute and a premier heart institute to start their construction work soon.

The LPL, one of the oldest and largest labs in the country, was set up in 1949 and hold about 6500 tests every day.

It is the first ISO-1999 certified lab with accredition from NABL, the US, which has the most advanced tests like neo-natal screening for nascent babies to diagnose genetic disorders called Inborn Errors of Metabolism (IEM) by which about 30 errors of metabolism can be detected.

''We are the only one to have satellite labs to speed up our tests. With this we can connect with the remotest part of the country,'' Dr Lal said.

UNI