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India Story |
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At a Glance
Capital - New Delhi
28°34'N 77°12'E
Largest city- Mumbai (Bombay) also known as financial capital of India
Official language(s)- Hindi, English, and 21 other languages
Area - Total 3,287,590 kmē (7th largest in the world)
Water (%) 9.56
Population
2006 est. - 1,095,351,995 (2nd largest in the world)
Population Density - 329/kmē
GDP (PPP) 2005 estimate
Total $3.633 trillion (4th highest in the world)
Per capita $3344
Currency - Rupee (INR)
Time zone
Summer (DST) IST (UTC+5:30)
not observed (UTC+5:30)
Internet TLD - .in
Calling code +91
Top
Healthcare Sector
The Indian healthcare sector has been growing at a frenetic pace
in the past few years. The windfall began ever since the developed
world discovered that it could get quality service for less than half
the price.
The sector is expected to post the highest year-on-year growth in
earnings in the fiscal year to March 31, 2007, says Reuters. It is set
to post a 42 per cent rise in earnings in the year to March 2007. These
figures are driven by availability of quality healthcare and the huge
rise in numbers visiting India for treatment.
The number of patients visiting India for medical treatment has
risen from 10,000 in 2000 to about 100,000 in 2005. With an annual
growth rate of 30 per cent, India is already inching closer to
Singapore, an established medicare hub that attracts 150,000 medical
tourists a year.
The healthcare industry employs over four million people, making
it one of the largest service sectors in the economy. A joint study by
the Confederation of Indian Industry and McKinsey shows: ·
- At the current pace of growth, medical tourism, currently pegged
at US$ 350 million, has the potential to grow into a US$ 2 billion
industry by 2012.
- Healthcare spending in the country will double over the
next 10 years. Private healthcare will form a large chunk of this
spending, rising from Rs 690 billion (US$ 14.8 billion) to Rs 1,560
billion (US$ 33.6 billion) in 2012. This figure could rise by an
additional Rs 390 billion (US$ 8.4 billion) if health insurance cover
is available to the rich and the middle class.
- The voluntary health insurance market, which is
estimated at Rs 4 billion (US$ 86.3 million) currently, is growing
fast. Industry estimates put the figure at Rs 130 billion (US$ 2.8
billion) by 2005. ·
- With the expected increase in the
pharmaceutical market, the total healthcare market could rise from Rs
1,030 billion (US$ 22.2 billion) currently (5.2 per cent of GDP) to Rs
2,320 billion (US$ 50 billion)-Rs 3,200 billion (US$ 69 billion)
(6.2-8.5 per cent of GDP) by 2012.
However, it is not only the cost advantage
that keeps the sector ticking. It has a high success rate and a growing
credibility.
- Indian specialists have
performed over 500,000 major surgeries and over a million other
surgical procedures including cardio-thoracic, neurological and cancer
surgeries, with success rates at par with international standards.
- The success rate in the 43,000 cardiac surgeries till 2002 was 98.5 per cent.
- India's success in 110 bone marrow transplants is 80 per cent.
- The success rate in 6,000 renal transplants is 95 per cent.
Ratings
- India's independent credit rating agency CRISIL has assigned a grade A
rating to super speciality hospitals like Escorts and multi speciality
hospitals like Apollo.
- NHS
of the UK has indicated that India is a favoured destination for
surgeries. · The British Standards Institute has now accredited the
Delhi-based Escorts Hospital.
- Apollo Group - India's largest private hospital chain and Wockhardt Hospital are now JCI accredited
Top
Geography
The territory of India constitutes a major portion of the Indian
subcontinent, situated on the Indian Plate, the northerly portion of
the Indo-Australian Plate, in southern Asia. India's northern and
northeastern states are partially situated in the Himalayan Mountain
Range. The rest of northern, central and eastern India consists of the
fertile Indo-Gangetic plain. In the west, bordering southeast Pakistan,
lies the Thar Desert. The southern Indian Peninsula is almost entirely
composed of the Deccan plateau, which is flanked by two hilly coastal
ranges, the Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats.
India is home to several major rivers, including the Ganga,
Brahmaputra, Yamuna, Godavari, Kaveri, Narmada, and Krishna. India has
three archipelagos - Lakshadweep off the southwest coast, the Andaman
and Nicobar Islands volcanic island chain to the southeast, and the
Sunderbans in the Gangetic delta in West Bengal.
Climate in India varies from tropical in the south to more temperate in
the Himalayan north, with elevated regions in the north receiving
sustained snowfall in winters. India's climate is strongly influenced
by the Himalayas and the Thar Desert. The Himalayas, along with the
Hindu Kush mountains in Pakistan, provide a barrier to the cold winds
from Central Asia. This keeps most of the Indian subcontinent warmer
than most locations in similar latitudes. The Thar Desert is
responsible for attracting the moisture laden southwest monsoon winds
in that provide most of India's rainfall between June to September. Top |
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