Rakesh Gangwal, co-founder of low-cost carrier IndiGo, has made a personal donation of Rs 100 crore to set up a School of Medical Sciences and Technology at IIT Kanpur of which he is an alumnus.

The development was confirmed by IIT Kanpur Director Abhay Karandikar.  “Here is big news from IIT Kanpur. In an extraordinary gesture, our alumnus Rakesh Gangwal, co-founder of IndiGo airlines has made one of the largest personal donations with a 100 crore contribution focused on supporting the School of Medical Sciences and Technology at IIT Kanpur,” Karandikar tweeted.

The IndiGo co-founder will also join the Advisory Board of the school.

Gangwal said, “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.”

This school will be completed in two phases. Phase 1 will include setting up a 500-bed super-specialty hospital, academic block, residential/hostel and service block with a total built-up area of around 8, 10,000 sq ft. It will also involve setting up Centres of Excellence (CoE) for pursuing R&D activities in futuristic medicine and is tentatively planned to be completed over 3-5 years.

Phase-2 is planned to be completed in 7-10 years and will see the hospital capacity to grow to 1,000 beds. It will also involve expanding clinical departments/centres, research areas, the inclusion of paramedical disciplines, alternative medicine, hospital management, sports medicine and public health programmes.

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