Since the fall of the Awami League government in the mass uprising of students last August, the internal situation in Bangladesh is still in a state of instability. In view of which the Indian High Commission in Bangladesh has taken all the workers back to the country. Visas to Bangladeshis have been temporarily stopped. Due to this, India's medical tourism sector has collapsed.
According to the country's top medical institutions, there has been a significant drop in the number of foreign tourists coming for medical treatment during the period from April to September 2024-25. As the arrival of Bangladeshis has decreased, the number of patients in the hospitals where they used to receive treatment has decreased by 25-40 percent. Which has a huge impact on their income.
According to a recent report by Indian rating agency CareAge Ratings, Bangladesh contributes 50-60 percent to India's total medical tourism.
Apollo Hospitals Enterprise (AHEL) ranks among the top hospitals where Bangladeshis go for treatment. The hospital said that in the first half of the year, revenue from Bangladeshi patients fell by 27 percent, while revenue from international patients fell by 15 percent compared to last year.
Madhu Sashidhar, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AHEL said, due to instability in Bangladesh, the number of patients coming to India has decreased significantly. Most of the patients from there used to come for regular health checkup or routine checkup. Others did not have such complex diseases. Now patients have started coming, but the number of patients who used to come from Bangladesh at this time last year has not yet returned.
The Indian government is now only issuing emergency visas to Bangladeshi citizens. In this situation, the number of patients who go for treatment from this country may decrease by 10 to 15 percent. This is the current picture of most hospitals in the country.
About 10 percent of the total revenue of Manipal Hospital, India's second largest hospital, comes from international patients. This hospital has two branches in Kolkata and Bangalore. About 40-45 percent of the total international patients in both branches are Bangladeshis.
Karthik Rajagopal, Chief Operating Officer of Manipal Hospital, said, 'Many Bangladeshi patients come to our hospital. Since last July, the number of patients has been decreasing. Since last September, the number of Bangladeshi patients has decreased to 50-60 percent. Currently, 60 percent of our international patients are Bangladeshis.
Apart from this, 9 percent of Max Healthcare's total revenue comes from international business. In the first six months of the financial year 2024-25, their international business has increased by 18 percent, but their income from the Bangladesh market has decreased considerably. They have an office in Bangladesh to assist with getting treatment at the hospital.
Anas Abdul Wajid, senior director and chief sales and marketing officer of the hospital, said Bangladeshis contribute about 5 percent to Max Healthcare's total international revenue. However, due to the recent political crisis in the country, this income has decreased by 50 percent.
Last month, India's High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Prannoy Kumar Verma, said visas are currently being issued only on an emergency basis, as there is a shortage of human resources. However, it is believed that it will not have a big impact on the country's hospital sector. Because, the contribution of medical tourism in this sector is 3 to 5 percent.
According to data from the Immigration Bureau of India, 635,000 tourists visited the country last year for medical treatment. Among them, about 3 lakh to 3 lakh 50 thousand were Bangladeshis.
