Ex-EDS honcho, Raju Venkatraman, who is also a non-executive independent director on the board of Polaris Software Lab since 2005, is now setting up a chain of diagnostic medical centres starting with Tamil Nadu.

His latest venture, MEDall Medical Services has already acquired independent diagnostic centers in Chennai and Tiruchi to initiate the process of establishing the chain.

Private equity player, Peepul Capital, which is aggressive in extending financial support to start-ups with a right focus on selected business segment, is infusing around $20 million (around Rs 90 crore) to help Raju Venkatraman realize his latest dream. Peepul Capital is understood to have picked up a sizeable minority stake in MEDall.

When contacted by Financial Chronicle, Raju Venkatraman, managing director & CEO, MEDall Medical Services replied in the affirmative on capital infusement from Peepul Capital. But refrained but disclosing the actual investment.

“We are working on a media strategy to make this story public,” is all what he was keen to share with FC.

However, a person privy to the development said, MEDall wants to build a “full fledged diagnostic medical care” center. It is investing its efforts and capital to build a chain of these centers. “In the first phase, it will focus on ‘Imaging’ and move into labs in the second phase,” he said.

MEDall is keen to introduce maximum technology into the system, so as to minimize human errors. It plans to have at least 13 centres by the end of the first year.

It has already acquired at least three independent centers—Precision Diagnostic Centre (now renamed as Precision MEDall Healthcare in Central Chennai as well as the diagnostic center functioning out of Malar Hospital (now a Fortis Hospital) in south Chennai, besides one other center in Tiruchi in central Tamil Nadu.

A Reuters news agency note on Raju Venkatraman says till recently he was the JMD at Firstsource Solutions. His career in technology outsourcing began with EDS, where he spearheaded the application outsourcing business (BPO) in a variety of verticals including healthcare, manufacturing and Federal Government.

In 1991, he became a pioneer in outsourcing by launching Vetri Systems, an off-shore outsourcing company, which was later sold to Lason, incorporated in 1998.

He served as its president, Data Management Services and was responsible for more than 7,500 employees and $85 million in revenue. In early 2002, he resigned from Lason and launched Sherpa.