Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital & Research Centre

The Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital and Research Centre brings cancer care to North Bihar and neighbouring states, a region that has long been underserved. It was developed by the Tata Memorial Centre under the Department of Atomic Energy and sits within the campus of Shri Krishna Medical College and Hospital. About 250 patients come each day, often with their families, for long days of treatment.

Built around a long day

Most patients come for the whole day, often with family, and the hospital is designed around that wait. Waiting areas are lit by daylight and open onto green courtyards, the corridors are wide, and a white and green palette keeps the rooms quiet. Cross-ventilation and shaded windows take the edge off the Bihar summer. Radiotherapy is reached by a covered link, and ambulances, service vehicles and patients each follow their own route, so the way in for a family is calm and clear.

Low and human in scale

The hospital is low-rise and modular in plan. Patient, clinical and administrative zones are kept apart so that each runs without getting in the way of the others. Corridors are wide, waiting areas are lit by daylight, and green courtyards give patients and families a calmer place to be. Inside, a white and green palette keeps rooms quiet and easy to clean.

Two buildings and a link

The 100-bed hospital holds outpatient clinics, chemotherapy wards, diagnostic imaging, a palliative care wing and a genomic laboratory, which brings research into everyday clinical work. Radiotherapy has its own radiation-shielded block with four linear accelerator bunkers, joined to the hospital by a covered link. The radiotherapy wing was supported by the Alkem Foundation.

Shade against the summer

Bihar's summers are harsh. The building's orientation and envelope are set for thermal comfort, with cross-ventilation and shaded windows reducing the need for mechanical cooling. Rainwater harvesting and solar water heating are part of the design, and modular service ducts let the building adapt over time. On the site, vehicles, patients and services follow separate routes, which helps daily running and infection control.

ARCH-EN DESIGN was Architectural and Engineering consultant to the Tata Memorial Centre. The Prime Minister inaugurated the hospital on 22 August 2025.