Mon Mar 03 17:58:50 UTC 2025: ## Puducherry Aims to Become Major Medical Tourism Hub
**Puducherry, March 3, 2025** – Lieutenant Governor K. Kailashnathan has announced Puducherry’s ambition to become a leading medical tourism destination in India. He highlighted the Union Territory’s nine medical colleges – a significant number considering its size – and its existing popularity as a tourist spot as key advantages. Kailashnathan urged collaborative efforts to realize this potential, suggesting the conversion of some medical colleges into super-specialty hospitals.
This initiative follows a significant investment in medical infrastructure. The government recently procured two MRI machines, each costing ₹11.50 crore, for the Rajiv Gandhi Government Women and Child Hospital and the Karaikal government hospital. A further ₹14 crore high-end MRI scanner is expected soon for the Puducherry government hospital. These purchases, along with other equipment like digital mammography machines, are part of a ₹60 crore investment in medical equipment last year, with an additional ₹14 crore planned for this year. All equipment comes with free annual maintenance. Chief Minister N. Rangasamy was also present at the inauguration of the new MRI facility at the Rajiv Gandhi Government Women and Child Hospital.
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