The Punjas Medical Centre in the Waiyavi sub-division of Lautoka will soon have an X-Ray facility, a Specialist Outpatient Department and a blood testing laboratory.

This is after the groundbreaking ceremony of the new extension was held today which will cost around $500,000.

Punjas and Sons Chief Marketing Officer Gopal Jadhav says health care and wellbeing play a major role in their corporate social responsibility activities and it’s the very center of their group mission.

Jadhav says the extension of the current building will be timely as they hope it will ease the load from the Lautoka Hospital.

Permanent Secretary for Health Doctor James Fong says the added services will greatly benefit residents in the area.

“So what we are going to work on given that this is part of our landscape together with the Health Centers around the place is to try and ensure that we have a referral pathway from here to Lautoka Hospital and back and that is crucial for us.”

The Centre has been operating under the public-private partnership agreement between the Ministry of Health and Medical Services and Punjas Charity Trust.

Work is anticipated to finish in four months.

The Punjas Medical Centre was the brainchild of Kanti Punja, and was commissioned on 23rd January 2015 and caters to more than 30,000 people.