New Delhi, March 25 The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is considering establishing its first medical college in partnership with a private entity on a vacant site within the Rajan Babu TB Hospital campus in Kingsway Camp, north Delhi, according to officials.
The civic body is also planning to develop an affiliated hospital on the campus.
The proposal, which was scheduled to be presented at Wednesday's Standing Committee meeting, could not be discussed due to the cancellation of the meeting, officials added, noting that it could now be taken up on March 30.
The MCD is expected to collaborate with a private entity for the project's execution. The proposal will be presented to the House for approval before work begins, with the plan already shared with the Delhi government, officials said.
The project envisions utilizing approximately 60 acres of land at the site, much of which has remained vacant for years.
The campus currently houses two major facilities: Rajan Babu TB Hospital and the Maharishi Valmiki Infectious Diseases Hospital, the only specialized infectious diseases facility in north India. Together, the hospitals have around 1,100 beds.
In 2017, the two hospitals were administratively merged, but this led to operational difficulties and affected service delivery. To address these issues, the MCD decided to separate their administration again in 2024.
Officials said the PPP model aims to provide affordable treatment and diagnostic services, particularly for economically weaker sections.
The civic body has already prepared a plan with a state-owned bank, which has been appointed as the transaction partner.
Earlier in 2021, the erstwhile North Delhi Municipal Corporation had considered leasing parts of the vacant land to private hospitals under a PPP model, but it did not receive approval at the time.
Currently, the MCD operates a medical college at Hindu Rao Hospital with 60 MBBS seats, and the new proposal also includes increasing the number of undergraduate seats in the city's civic-run institutions, officials added.