BENGALURU: In a major push to organ transplantation, the Karnataka Cabinet approved signing an MoU with Azim Premji Foundation to allot 10 acres of land on lease for 99 years on the premises of Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases, to set up a 1,000-bed super-specialty hospital in five years, at an estimated cost of Rs 1,000 crore.
Briefing the press after the cabinet meeting, Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil informed that the Foundation will set up a 300-bed hospital in three years, and expand it to 1,000 beds to facilitate all types of organ transplant, including liver, kidney, heart, intestine and others. The hospital coming up near Nimhans will help in harvesting organs from brain-dead donors.
“It will be implemented under public philanthropic partnership as the entire investment, except for the land, will be borne by the Foundation which will spend Rs 350 crore annually to run the hospital. The Foundation has okayed the government’s proposal. The new facility will not only be a great contribution to Karnataka but for the entire nation,” said Patil.
In Karnataka alone, over 5,000 patients are in queue for kidney transplant, and over 1,000 for liver transplant, he informed. About 70 per cent of beds will be free of cost for economically weaker sections, especially BPL families, and 30 per cent for others, who will however benefit from the Ayushman Bharat Arogya Karnataka (ABArK) scheme, he elaborated.
The medical education minister, department secretary and finance secretary will be on the hospital board, which will be named after the Foundation, he said. The Institute of Gastroenterology Sciences & Organ Transplant (IGOT Hospital) will continue functioning and be taken over by the Foundation hospital in future, he said.
Basavanna Biodiversity Park
The Cabinet approved setting up of the Vishwaguru Basavanna Bruhat Biodiversity Park on 153.39 acres in Madappanahalli reserve forest in Yelahanka, at a cost of Rs 250 crore in three years, and will implement the first phase of work at a cost of Rs 50.29 crore by utilising CSR funds.
It will be a huge lung space after Lal Bagh and Cubbon Park, to be developed near Shivaram Karanth Layout in North Bengaluru. It will have medicinal plants, bird sanctuary, children’s play zone etc, Forests Minister Eshwar Khandre said.
Other decisions
To recruit Chaitanya Bilagi, daughter of IAS officer Mahantesh Bilagi, who died in a mishap, under compassionate grounds
Develop Karnataka GST analytics portal at Rs 19cr, in association with IIT Hyderabad
Approval to The Karnataka Jnana Bhandar Manuscripts and Digitalisation Bill, 2026, to preserve all types of manuscripts collected from the public
Upgrade DIETs in six districts as DIET for Excellence at Rs 36.90cr
Bring in new Community Corporate Social Responsibility policy by framing guidelines for effective usage of funds