‘Private diagnostic centre roped in for services’
Irfan Tramboo
SRINAGAR, Dec 23: Two CT scan machines at Government Medical College (GMC) Anantnag are currently defunct due to technical faults and authorities have roped in private diagnostic centre to fill the gap.
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According to officials, the 128-slice CT scanner installed at GMC Anantnag developed an unexpected technical fault on December 15, 2025, at around 5:15 pm.
They said that the authorised service engineer was immediately informed, and troubleshooting was initiated through online support in coordination with the night-duty technical staff, but the issue could not be resolved remotely.
The GMC authorities said that the engineer subsequently visited the site on December 16, though the fault persisted.
“The service report confirmed failure of certain critical components requiring replacement,” they said.
Officials further said that on December 18, two identified components were replaced, but the machine remained non-functional, indicating the presence of additional concurrent technical faults that could not be diagnosed initially.
“Further components were later identified for replacement,” they added.
The officials said that while most of the required parts were arranged on priority, one critical component had to be imported from outside India, “resulting in an unavoidable delay in restoring full functionality.”
The service provider, they added, is making continuous efforts to restore the machine at the earliest.
However, the authorities said that uninterrupted scanning and imaging services continue to be provided to patients without any additional out-of-pocket expenditure under interim arrangements made with a private diagnostic centre.
In addition, the 16-slice CT scanner-an old unit installed in the erstwhile District Hospital Anantnag in 2014-has also remained non-functional “due to wear and tear after nearly 12 years of continuous operation.”
Officials said the latest shutdown was caused by damage to the motherboard of the console, attributed to electrical faults in the UPS system.
“The unit is currently under repair and is expected to be restored within the next few days,” the officials said.
The authorities noted that such complex, high-end medical equipment can develop “unforeseen technical glitches despite regular maintenance”, adding that this is the first instance since the installation of the 128-slice CT scanner that CT services have been unavailable at the hospital.
To ensure continuity of essential diagnostic services, the GMC Anantnag administration has made interim arrangements with a private diagnostic centre for conducting CT scans.
Officials said that all patients referred to the centre are undergoing scans strictly at approved hospital rates, ensuring no additional financial burden.
“Ambulance services are also being provided for transporting patients to and from the diagnostic centre, while all CT scan reporting continues to be done by doctors from the Department of Radiology, GMC Anantnag,” they said.
The Department of Radiology reiterated its commitment to delivering high standards of patient care, stating that it continues to function round-the-clock and “is managing a heavy patient load through coordinated contingency arrangements.”
Officials further said that the requirement for a new emergency CT scan machine has already been projected and is under active consideration of the college administration.
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