Patna, Dec. 19: If all goes well, three years down the line heart patients of Bihar will not have to travel down south or north for treatment. A super speciality hospital in the state capital would take care of them.

The state government would set up the 250-bed hospital sprawling over 10 acres on Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS) premises in collaboration with Bangalore-based Narayana Hrudayalaya.

Health secretary Sanjay Kumar told The Telegraph: “The proposal is in an advanced stage now and details of the agreement between the state government and Narayana Hrudayalaya are being worked out. Renowned cardiologist Dr Devi Prasad Shetty will tie up with us through his Narayana Hrudayalaya for setting up the hospital with modern and advanced cardiac treatment facilities.”

Sources said Narayana Hrudayalaya and the state government would enter into an agreement within two months. The hospital would be ready to cure people two-and-a-half years after its construction work starts.

Health minister Ashwini Kumar Choubey said his department was keen to get the project going but would explore all angles before it finally took off.

“We will discuss everything in the IGIMS board of governors’ meeting. If required, the cabinet’s approval will also be taken before the project starts,” he said.

The health secretary said: “The state-of-the-art treatment facilities for heart diseases will be offered at the hospital at reasonable rates. The fee of an open-heart surgery will be around Rs 60,000. The hospital will benefit people of the state.”

Sources in the health department said the details of the agreement were being worked out. “Once the MoU is signed, a consultant will be hired to prepare the detailed project report,” an official of the department said.

The proposal to set up the heart care hub on the IGIMS campus has sparked a few posers. “Setting up of a hospital on the campus of IGIMS, an autonomous institution, in public-private partnership (PPP) mode means it will be a separate centre. Technically it seems to be difficult,” said a source in the hospital.

He said: “The proposed infrastructure for the new medical college and the nursing college would exhaust all free space on the campus. So, providing 10 acres to the hospital will be difficult.”

Earlier, the health department had thought of a tie-up up with the Bangalore-based super-specialty hospital to upgrade the existing cardio-thoracic unit at IGIMS. A health department official said: “The matter was sent to the health department as cabinet clearance was needed on whether the institution could enter into such a PPP agreement or not. But now there is a plan to set up a separate hospital altogether on the IGIMS campus.”