Apollo mulls options to acquire Kolkata-based West Bank Hospital

West Bank Hospital has over 250 beds and has service on various categories

Apollo Hospital Group, as part of its efforts to expand its operations in various parts of the country, is assessing options to acquire Kolkata-based West Bank Hospital, a part of Meridian Medical Research and Hospital Ltd, along with other interested players.

The company today informed the Bombay Stock Exchange regarding the possibility of acquiring the facility, by stating, "Apollo Gleneagles Hospital Limited, a 50% Joint Venture between Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited and the Parkway Group headquartered in Kolkata is assessing this along with other potential interested players too. However the evaluation is still at a preliminary stage."

West Bank Hospital, according to its website, has over 250 beds and has service on various categories including gynaecology, ophthalmology, oncology, surgery, paediatrics, cardiology, psychiatry, dermatology, medicine, neurology, chest medicine, gastroenterology and orthopedics. It is a unit of Meridian Medical Research & Hospital Ltd.

A senior official from Meridian Medical Research & Hospital refused to comment on the development.

Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals, Kolkata, a 510-bedded multispecialty tertiary care hospital is a joint venture of Apollo Group of Hospitals, India and Parkway Health of Singapore.

The Parkway Group is a leading healthcare group in Asia. It provides more than 70% of private healthcare in Singapore. Its subsidiaries include Parkway Group Healthcare, which owns a network of regional hospitals and medical centers in Malaysia, India and Brunei; and Parkway Hospitals Singapore, which owns three hospitals in Singapore - East Shore, Gleneagles, Mount Elizabeth Hospitals and Parkway Health Day surgery Centre.

Meanwhile, Apollo Hospitals Group has recently announced the latest addition of a 200 bed hospital in Nellore - The Apollo Speciality Hospitals, Nellore with special focus on Orthopedics, Trauma and Cardiology.

The company has recently announced opening of its 150-bed Apollo Speciality Hospitals in Old Mahabalipuram Road, near Chennai with special focus on Neurology, Trauma, Cardio Thoracic and Cardiology.