Indigo co-founder gifts Rs 100 crore to IIT-Kanpur

We periodically witness successful alumnus of A-rated elite educational institutions giving back to them in their personal capacity as a sign of gratitude for what they learnt there. One of the greatest personal donations to the Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur (IIT Kanpur) came on Monday from an alumnus. 

Rakesh Gangwal, co-founder of IndiGo Airlines, has pledged a donation of Rs 100 crore to establish the School of Medical Sciences and Technology, which would include a 500-bed super-specialty hospital and other centres of excellence on its campus. In addition, the IndiGo co-founder will soon join the institution’s Advisory Board. 

“It is an honor to be associated with such a noble endeavor with my alma mater,” Gangwal said at the event. “I am proud to see that the institution that has produced thousands of leaders across various sectors is now paving the way in the healthcare sector. Healthcare is more than ever intertwined with technological advances, and this school will accelerate innovation in healthcare.” 

Over the following ten years, the Medical Sciences and Technology School will be constructed. There will be two phases to the project. 

Phase 1 will include the construction of a 500-bed super-specialty hospital, academic block, residential/hostel, and service block with a total built-up area of about 8,10,000 sq ft, as well as the establishment of Centers of Excellence (CoE) for R&D activities. Phase 1 is expected to take 3 to 5 years to complete. 

The hospital’s capacity will be increased to 1,000 beds in Phase 2 of the project, which will include the addition of paramedical disciplines, alternative medicine, hospital management, sports medicine, and public health programmes, as well as the expansion of clinical departments and centres, research areas, and the inclusion of paramedical disciplines, alternative medicine, hospital management, sports medicine, and public health programmes. Phase 2 will take 7 to 10 years to complete. 

The medical sciences and technology school, which will include engineering research in the realm of medicine, will cost Rs 600 crore to build. 

Who is Rakesh Gangwal? 

Rakesh Gangwal, an Indian American billionaire businessman, was born in Kolkata in 1953. He received his education at Don Bosco (Park Circus) in Kolkata. IndiGo airline is co-founded by him, and he owns 37 percent of the company. 

In 1975, he received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, and in 1979, he received an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. From 2003 to 2007, Rakesh Gangwal served as the chairman, president, and CEO of Worldspan. From 1998 to 2001, Gangwal was the president and CEO of US Group Airways. 

Rakesh Gangwal’s lengthy involvement with the airline sector began in September 1980, when he worked closely with United Airlines as an Associate of Booz Allen & Hamilton, Inc. Rakesh Gangwal joined US Airways after serving as executive vice president of Air France from November 1994. 

Rakesh Gangwal worked as a financial analyst for Ford Motor Company’s product development group and as a production and planning engineer for Philips India Limited. 

Published by: Shivani Bhalke

Edited by: Subbuthai Padma