Manipal: The Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) on Wednesday inaugurated a 100-bed palliative and respite care facility near Udupi, claiming it to be one of the first free-of-cost centres of its kind in India. The Manipal Hospice and Respite Centre (MHRC), located at Havanje on a 12-acre riverside campus, is designed to offer specialised care for patients with life-limiting illnesses, including cancer and non-cancer conditions.

The Governor of Andhra Pradesh and former Supreme Court judge, Justice Syed Abdul Nazeer, inaugurated the facility. Speaking at the event, he called MHRC a “visionary model” and said that such initiatives were crucial at a time when India faces an acute shortfall in palliative care.

“India recorded 1.4 million new cancer cases in 2022, yet only a fraction of those in need receive palliative care,” he noted. “This centre shifts focus from hospital-centric treatment to holistic, dignified, and compassionate care that alleviates both emotional and financial distress.”

The centre, which will begin operations in June 2025, is attached to Kasturba Medical College and Kasturba Hospital, making it the only such hospice in the country linked to a tertiary care teaching hospital. It aims to serve not only as a clinical care unit but also as a training ground for future specialists in palliative medicine.

The MHRC will offer end-of-life care, pain management, rehabilitation, stoma and wound care, and counselling services through a multidisciplinary team. The model integrates psychological, social, and spiritual support, with a strong emphasis on family involvement and bereavement counselling.

Governor Nazeer praised the initiative’s adherence to the principle of Manava Seve Madhava Seve—service to mankind is service to God—and called for similar institutions across India.

MAHE officials said the facility would also run telehealth programmes to extend services to patients in remote areas. The institution hopes MHRC will act as a replicable model for other medical universities and state health systems.

Key dignitaries present at the event included MAHE Trust President Dr Ranjan Pai, Pro-Chancellor Dr H S Ballal, Vice-Chancellor Lt Gen (Dr) M D Venkatesh, and Director of MHRC Dr Seema Rao, among others. Political leaders from the region, including MP Kota Srinivas Poojary and MLA Yashpal Suvarna, also attended. Senior healthcare professionals and academic leaders from MAHE and Kasturba Medical College were present at the

ceremony.