BOWRING AND LADY CURZON HOSPITAL

Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospitals (BLCH) is a teaching hospital and autonomous university situated in Shivajinagar, in the central business district of Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. It was built on the plan of the Lariboisière Hospital in Paris and was formally opened in 1868 by Lewin Benthon Bowring, then Commissioner of Mysore. Originally a medical institution belonging to Mysore State, it was transferred to the Civil and Military Administration in 1884 and served as the sole Civil Medical Institution of Bengaluru until 1890. The hospital initially had accommodation for 104 beds, 80 for men and 24 for women, with additional facilities for female patients funded by philanthropic citizens and the Government of India, leading to the establishment of the Lady Curzon Hospital. Both hospitals were equipped with X-ray and pathological laboratories and were placed under a single Superintendent in 1911. In 1947, following the retrocession of the Civil and Military station to the Mysore Durbar, the hospitals came under the administrative control of the Mysore Medical Department. The institution has also taught students pursuing medical degrees since the late 19th century during the British Raj, and it played an active role during the COVID-19 pandemic, contributing to healthcare services and medical research.