Fortis to demerge hospitals business into Manipal
Mumbai: Fortis Healthcare has announced plans to demerge its hospitals business (Fortis Hospitals) into Manipal Hospital Enterprises Private Limited (Manipal Hospitals).
According to a statement issued on late Tuesday night, the company said that the proposed transaction is subject to shareholders' approval, creditor's approval, applicable regulatory approvals (including Competition Commission of India, SEBI, stock exchanges and National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT)) and other customary conditions precedent.
The company's board has also approved sale of its 20 per cent stake in SRL Limited (SRL) to Manipal Hospitals.
"The resultant entity Manipal Hospitals will be a publicly traded company listed on NSE and BSE. The remaining FHL will be an investment holding company with 36.6 per cent stake in SRL," the statement said.
"As part of the proposed transaction, Dr. Ranjan Pai and TPG will invest RS 3,900 crore into Manipal Hospitals."
As per the statement, the funds will be utilised by Manipal Hospitals to "finance the acquisition of 50.9 per cent stake in SRL (20.0 per cent from FHL and 30.9 per cent from other investors for which discussions are currently underway)".
"In addition, the investment will support the proposed acquisition of hospital assets owned by RHT Health Trust ("RHT") and the growth of the hospitals and the diagnostics businesses," the statement said.
Accordingly, the combination of Manipal Hospitals and Fortis Hospitals will result in the creation of the largest provider of healthcare services in India by revenue with 41 hospitals in India and 4 hospitals overseas.
"The hospitals' complementary geographic footprints and combined clinical strengths will provide significant scale, revenue and cost synergies," the statement added.
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Air India Express introduces late-night Bengaluru–Mangaluru service
International services at M’luru cancelled on March 7
Mangaluru: Air India Express will introduce a late-night daily flight service on the Bengaluru–Mangaluru–Bengaluru sector starting March 10, 2026.
According to the sources, flight IX 5971 will depart from Bengaluru at 9.25 pm and arrive in Mangaluru at 10.40 pm. The return flight, IX 5972, will depart from Mangaluru at 11.10 pm and reach Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru, at 12.20 am.
The additional service will operate daily and will remain in effect until March 28, 2026.
Meanwhile, Air India Express has cancelled all its scheduled international flights from Mangaluru International Airport (IXE) on March 7 due to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.
The Bengaluru–Mangaluru sector already has multiple daily services. Apart from Air India Express, IndiGo also operates flights on this route.
