India to tap ME for medical tourism

For the upcoming CII Tamil Nadu Travel Mart (TTM), the Middle East is a crucial market. Its parallel event, CII Tamil Nadu Medical Travel Mart, in association with the Health Department, Govt. of Tamil Nadu, aims to be an eye opener for the ME buyers.

TT Bureau

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with Tamil Nadu Travel Mart Society will organise the CII Tamil Nadu Medical Travel Mart. The event will have a knowledge sharing programme, which would see in attendance eminent speakers from health and related agencies, government bodies, central and state governments, ministries, officials from the Department of Health, policy makers and professionals in the field of healthcare and eminent experts from healthcare and related industry.

S Sundar, Honorary Secretary, Tamil Nadu Travel Mart Society, says that the Middle East is an important market for the state of Tamil Nadu. “While we don’t know the exact number of buyers coming from the Middle East for the Tamil Nadu Travel Mart, the market is very important for the state. There is increased connectivity from the Middle East to Tamil Nadu.”

Sundar says that the state is not only a temple destination, but there are many other avenues of leisure as well as wellness, which attracts the Middle Eastern travellers. “There are lovely wellness properties in Tanjore and other places in Tamil Nadu. Apart from that people can come here for cultural experiences, as well as shopping, which is very affordable in Tamil Nadu,” he said. Tamil Nadu has been one of the preferred destinations in MVT. According to a recent study by Grant Thornton, more than 45 per cent of patients who choose India as their healthcare destination, have chosen Tamil Nadu as heir state of choice because of its state-of-the-art medical care at an affordable price.

“Tamil Nadu has state-of-the-art medical facilities and equipments, which are not even present internationally as well as in major metro cities in India,” Sundar added. The exhibition will focus on hospitals, healthcare centres, AYUSH hospitals, educational institutions (medical colleges, nursing colleges, pharma colleges & AYUSH colleges), medical tourism facilitators and TPAs.

The event will reiterate the importance of Tamil Nadu in the medical value travel sector. The three-day conference and exhibition would also have B2B meetings. India has the finest and one of the largest pool of doctors and paramedics in South Asia, with many of them of global repute. India’s expertise in highly specialised areas of organ transplants, orthopaedics, cardiology, oncology, neurology etc., has made the country an emerging hotspot for Medical Value Travel (MVT).