Kasaragod: The first dedicated COVID-19 hospital in Kerala, built by the Tata Group, was inaugurated here on Wednesday by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who said it was an excellent example of how Public-Private Partnership can be put to good use.

Built by the Tata Group using prefabricated containers in just five months at a cost of Rs 60 crore, the 551-bed hospital has 36 ventilators for the patients.

The Chief Minister, who inaugurated the hospital through video conferencing, thanked the Tata Group for showing interest in the health sector of Kerala.

"The COVID hospital constructed by the Tata group, which will take care of the people during the pandemic, is an excellent example of how Public-Private Partnership can be put to good use," Vijayan said.

The 80,000 sq ft-hospital has been built on five acres of land at Thekkil village in Kasaragod.

The authority to decide the facilities and the appointments to the hospital is with the state government.

Meanwhile, the largest COVID First-Line Treatment Centre (CFLTC) in the state, a 1,400 bed facility, was also opened on Wednesday at Nattika at Thrissur.

The facility was set up at the building of Emmay Projects (India) Private Ltd, owned by M A Yusuff Ali of the Lulu group.

The CFLTC has all modern health facilities, including beds, e-robots, telemedicine, e-bikes for food distribution, bio-medical waste management and bio-compost system, officials said.