Shimla | August 26, 2026 | INFRAINTEL Bureau
(Diary Times)
The Himachal Pradesh government is working to eliminate waiting periods for CT scans and MRI examinations by expanding diagnostic services across major public health institutions in the state.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu told the Assembly that the 19-year-old MRI machine at Indira Gandhi Medical College in Shimla had been replaced.
He said Himachal Pradesh was the first northern Indian state to introduce robotic surgery in government hospitals and that more than 100 procedures had been completed using the technology.
According to the Chief Minister, a robotic procedure costs approximately Rs 1.30 lakh. Patients are charged Rs 30,000, or Rs 50,000 when admitted to special wards, while the state bears the remaining expenditure.
Sukhu also said robotic-surgery equipment had been purchased at a price Rs 1 crore lower than comparable equipment at AIIMS. The available report did not provide procurement specifications or a basis for direct comparison.
Tenders worth Rs 125 crore have been issued for laboratory automation, and new equipment is being supplied to designated Model Health Institutions.
The programme could reduce diagnostic delays and improve access to advanced treatment, but results will depend on specialist staffing, equipment uptime, maintenance contracts, referral protocols and transparent reporting of waiting times. Capital acquisition should be matched with recurring budgets and district-level access so that advanced facilities do not remain concentrated in a few institutions.