Hyderabad: Narayana Hrudayalaya has inaugurated the phase-I of the 5,000-bed health city in Hyderabad. Set up in association with the Malla Reddy group of educational institutes, the hospital has 500 beds as of now.

The healthcare group said it would add 500 beds each year to reach 5,000 beds.

It also intended to expand its presence to seven more cities to take the total to 14 in the next 2-3 years.

“Excluding the building, it would cost Rs 100-Rs 200 crore to set up a hospital of this size. We raise funds internally and we have partners who are willing to fund our projects,” Dr Devi Shetty, Chairman of the group, said in an interaction with reporters after the inaugural.

With regard to the research initiative, he said the group had launched a programme to develop a vaccine to check heart failures.

The research was also aimed at correcting congenital heart problems at the embryonic stage itself.

On the scarcity of doctors, he said the Medical Council of India had decided to set up 100 medical colleges a year over the next five years.