Dr Agarwal Group raises Rs 270 crore from Temasek to double eye hospitals

New Delhi: Temasek, a Singapore headquartered global investor has infused Rs 270 crore ($38 million) into Dr Agarwal’s Health Care Ltd, as it continues with its quick pace of capital pumping in Indian companies after a hectic 2018. It has acquired a minority stake in Dr Agarwal's eye care hospital chain as the Indian group Wednesday unveiled an ambitious expansion plan to double its number of hospitals from 76 to 150 in five years.

Chairman of Dr Agarwal's Group of Eye Hospitals, Amar Agarwal, told reporters that the chain has raised Rs 270 crore investment from Temasek which has acquired a minority stake in the hospital chain.

He, however, did not outline the nitty gritty of share pattern following the investment.

"For the first time Temasek is investing in eye care in India and it is proof of our credibility," he said.

“We believe their (Temasek’s) expertise and support will help our company expand our network of clinics and operations to better meet the growing demand for affordable and quality eye care across India,” Amar Agarwal, chairman, Dr Agarwal’s Group of Eye Hospitals told Vccircle.

From a single hospital in 2006 here, Agarwal said the hospital has grown to 76 in just over 10 years and backed by such a hands-on experience, he was confident of expanding its footprint.

Of the 76 Agarwal eye hospitals, 13 are in African countries including Ghana and the rest in 10 Indian States with Tamil Nadu topping the list with 25 centres.

Stating that there were 350 eye doctors presently in the Agarwal group of hospitals, Amar Agarwal expressed confidence the numbers will grow to 800 doctors over a period of time.

The aim is to ensure high-quality eye care "everywhere.. in all the centres and to have a clinical audit team," he said.

Agarwal said the proposed expansion will be carried out in three phases and "we will be clocking 100 hospitals," in the next 15 months and reach 125 by three years and eventually the tally will be 150 in five years, he said.

Dr Adil Agarwal, the CEO, Dr Agarwal Group, said the focus of expansion will be on the metro as well as tier 2 and 3 cities in States including Maharashtra, Kerala, Telangana, West Bengal and central India.

"The expansion will be done through a mix of strategic partnerships, acquisitions and greenfield hospitals. Innovation and technology will continue to be at the forefront of our growth," he said.

The hospital will be investing more in cutting edge technology across all their centres. "Innovation and technology will continue to be at the forefront of our growth," Adil Agarwal said.

The hospital commenced its operation in Chennai in 1957 as a single facility and it now has 17 centres here, he said, adding it is poised to expand its presence to 25 centres in Chennai alone.

For Dr Agarwal's the earlier round of investment came from ADV Partners that had infused Rs 270 crore in 2016.

According to the hospital, it offers a complete range of top-class eye care services including laser correction, vitreoretinal surgery, corneal transplantation, glaucoma and squint at its centres.