New Delhi investigating alleged illegal transplants at Apollo hospital in city

NEW DELHI/HYDERABAD, Dec 6 (Reuters) - The New Delhi city government is investigating an Apollo hospital, part of India's largest private hospital chain, after a media report linked it to the illegal sale by Myanmar nationals of their kidneys for organ transplants.

The National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO), which falls under the federal health ministry, had written to the Delhi authorities following a report in Britain's Telegraph that accused Apollo of being involved in a "cash for kidneys" scandal involving villagers from Myanmar.

The report said young villagers from Myanmar were being flown to its Delhi hospital and enticed to sell their kidneys to rich Burmese patients.

Apollo Hospitals (APLH.NS) did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

In the report, based on an undercover reporter's conversations with agents and Apollo officials from Myanmar, Apollo Hospitals said it was "completely shocked" by the newspaper's findings and would launch an internal investigation.

"Any suggestion of our wilful complicity or implicit sanctioning of any illegal activities relating to organ transplants is wholly denied," the report quoted Apollo saying.

NOTTO Director Anil Kumar told Reuters on Wednesday: "This issue requires a deep investigation and concrete evidence before deciding on the next course of action."

Delhi Health Secretary S B Deepak Kumar told Reuters the city was initiating a probe following an order from the federal government.

Indraprastha Medical Corp (IMCL.NS), an associate of Apollo which manages its two hospitals in the capital region of Delhi, said it had initiated an inquiry into the matter and called the allegations against it "absolutely false, ill-informed and misleading".

Indraprastha Medical will assist and provide all relevant information and data to authorities when asked, though it was yet to receive any indication from the authorities that the investigation was under way, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said.

The Myanmar government did not respond to Reuters request for comment.

Chennai-based chain Apollo, which runs over 70 hospitals across India, performed 1,641 solid organ transplants in 2022, according to company data. The hospital also treats foreign patients who fly into India.

The Indraprastha Apollo Hospital in Sarita Vihar in the southeast of the city which is cited in the Telegraph report is one of New Delhi's most renowned and popular private hospitals.