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Surprising or mockery: There is only 1 MRI machine in entire Jmu Province

Vikas Gupta. Dated: 10/6/2022 11:52:24 AM

VIKAS GUPTA Jammu, Oct 5 It may surprise you but there is only one functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine catering to the entire Jammu province comprising 10-districts, at Government Medical College & Hospital (GMC&H), Jammu. There are more than 50 lakh population in Jammu division who are dependent on the single MRI machine making a mockery of the claims of improving health sector infrastructure by the officials. In 2019, the Union Territory government had invited tenders to install additional MRI machines in hospitals of Jammu, but due to some unknown reasons installation of the machines had been delayed, forcing patients to shell out thousands of rupees at private diagnostic centres. Sources said that non-serious approach of senior bureaucrats and red-tapism has denied Jammu division crucial MRI diagnostic machines, which is an important system to detect deadly diseases to save the precious lives of the people. “Due to the single MRI machines patients have to wait for months to get the scans. Even serious patients have to wait endlessly due to the pressure on the MRI centre at GMCJammu. It is humanly not possible to meet the demands of people”, said a senior doctor in GMC Jammu. The charges for MRI scan is Rs 2500 at Government Medical College while in private labs, its around Rs 6000 or more. MRI machines at national and international level costs Rs 10 to Rs 15 crore, which is not much for the government which has a budget of crores of rupees for the health sector. “Patients from rural areas and poor sections of society are the main sufferers. Due to poor financial conditions they have no option but to wait for months for MRI”, said a source. Surprisingly the Super Specialty Hospital in Jammu, there are only two functional departments established: Neurology and Cardiology. MRI room has been constructed but no MRI machine has been installed. Sources claimed that GMC administration has spent Rs 70 lakh for construction of the main gate but administration claims that there are scarcity of funds to install a MRI machine. “Health Department should ensure that all the private MRI diagnostic centres operating in Jammu should offer the services as per the rates set by the government so that common people and patients can get benefit”, sources said.