Himachal Expands Advanced Healthcare
Munish Sood
Mandi
Himachal Pradesh took a major step towards strengthening advanced healthcare services on Friday as Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu inaugurated a robotic surgery facility at Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Government Medical College, Nerchowk in Mandi district.
The facility, established at a cost of ₹28.44 crore, makes Nerchowk the third medical institution in the state to offer robotic surgery after Atal Super Speciality Hospital, Chamiyana in Shimla and Dr. Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College, Tanda in Kangra. The Chief Minister also observed the first surgery carried out using the newly installed robotic system.
Sukhu said that the state government is committed to introducing advanced medical technologies across Himachal’s medical institutions. He announced that robotic surgery services would soon be introduced at Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) in Shimla and Hamirpur Medical College, with the process already underway.
Highlighting the performance of robotic surgery systems in the state, the Chief Minister said that 151 surgeries have already been conducted at Chamiyana and 92 at Tanda Medical College with encouraging results.
He stated that the government aims to equip medical colleges with high-end facilities comparable to AIIMS Delhi so that they do not function merely as referral centres. Doctors will also be sent on exposure visits to gain training and knowledge about modern medical technologies.
Addressing the state’s financial situation, Sukhu said that despite the closure of the Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG), which has reduced the state’s annual budget by nearly ₹10,000 crore, the government plans to invest around ₹3,000 crore in advanced medical technologies in the coming years. He assured that financial constraints would not affect the improvement of healthcare services.
The Chief Minister also announced the establishment of a Cardiology Department at Nerchowk Medical College and said postgraduate (PG) courses would be started in all departments. In departments lacking professors, the government will grant a one-time relaxation to allow the courses to begin without delay. He also announced an increase in senior residency posts.
Sukhu said the radiology department and other medical units at the college would be strengthened and vacant posts of doctors, paramedical staff and technicians would be filled soon. He added that PG courses and senior residency programmes will be introduced in all medical colleges across the state to improve healthcare delivery and medical education.
The Chief Minister further announced that vacant posts at the Nerchowk Trauma Centre would also be filled to strengthen emergency services. He said the process to install a 3-Tesla MRI machine and a LINAC machine is underway, while a PET scan machine will also be installed at the institution in the near future.
To support medical professionals, Sukhu said the stipend of senior resident doctors has been increased from ₹40,000 to ₹1 lakh per month, while the stipend for senior resident super specialist doctors has been raised from ₹1 lakh to ₹1.30 lakh.
During his visit, the Chief Minister interacted with doctors and staff at the medical college and sought feedback on facilities and institutional requirements. He said suggestions from medical professionals would be incorporated into future policy decisions to strengthen healthcare services across the state.
He also announced that medical colleges in Himachal Pradesh would have student sections of 60 each, with staff strength maintained accordingly to ensure better quality medical education.
Several political leaders, including MLAs Sunder Singh Thakur and Inder Singh Gandhi, former minister Prakash Chaudhary, former MLAs Sohan Singh Thakur and Bambar Thakur, District Congress President Champa Thakur and other Congress leaders and officials, were present on the occasion.
