Metropolis ties up with Sri Lankan group

Metropolis Healthservices, a chain of corporate diagnostics centres has partnered with Sri Lanka-based Nawaloka Group, to create a 50:50 joint venture called Nawaloka Metropolis and foray into the diagnostics centre space in Sri Lanka with an investment of between Rs 4 and 5 crore.

Nawaloka Group, which owns Nawaloka Hospital among 23 other enterprises will partner with Metropolis to open diagnostic centres and routine labs each in the 10 poly-clinics and 10 primary healthcare centres that it plans to set up in the next two years.

Nawaloka Group has plans to invest about Rs 28.5 crore to build the 10 poly-clinics. They also plan to have collection centres for areas which lack primary care facilities.

"Nationally, we will launch at Hyderabad and Kolkata (diagnostic centres) which will be completed within this year. The next step is international centres where we can export services; India can score in a big way, as we offer lab facilities which are equally good or better (compared with the rest of the world)," said Sushil Shah, chairman, Metropolis.

With this tie-up, Nawaloka Hospital which was earlier offering between 200 and 300 diagnostic tests has leapfrogged to offering about 1,500 tests. The Rs 4-5 crore that Metropolis is to invest will be to set up new diagnostic centres and upgrade the present ones.

From Nawaloka's total income of Rs 64.5 crore at present laboratory tests account for Rs 4.35 crore.

Metropolis plans to opening about 25 primary, tertiary and secondary diagnostic centres across India in both metros and mini-metros in the next three years.