Health secretary PK Mohapatra (centre) takes part in the ground-breaking ritual at Dumduma on Friday. Telegraph picture

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 17: Residents will have better access to superspeciality health care in the city with Narayana Health, previously known as Narayana Hrudyalaya, a Bangalore-based multi-specialty hospital chain, set to come up.

A 1,000-bed multi-speciality hospital will be set up at Dumduma on the city outskirts. The ground-breaking ceremony was held at the site today. The state government has provided land for the hospital free of cost.

In the first phase, the hospital will start operating with 200 beds by March next year. At full capacity, the hospital is slated to have 1,000 beds with superspecialty services covering all clinical specialties.

Health secretary P.K. Mohapatra, who was present at the ground-breaking ceremony today, said: “The hospital will provide state-of-the-art tertiary care and meet the growing demand for quality and affordable health care for the masses.”

The foundation stone of the hospital project was laid on September 30, 2012, by chief minister Naveen Patnaik. Chairman of Narayana Health Dr Devi Shetty, a renowned cardiac specialist, was present on the occasion.

Narayana Health has obtained no-objection certificates from the agencies concerned and will submit the necessary documents to the Bhubaneswar Development Authority for final construction clearance. Based on the success of the group’s first low-cost construction model hospital in Mysore, the hospital in Bhubaneswar will ensure a modular infrastructure with energy efficient and environment-friendly design.