The breakdown of the lone MRI machine at GMC Jammu is a stark reminder of the fragile and skeletal nature of public healthcare infrastructure in the Jammu division. Once again, a single point of failure has paralysed diagnostic services for lakhs of people, exposing how poorly prepared the system is to handle even predictable contingencies. In today’s medical world, radiodiagnosis, and MRI in particular, is indispensable for managing neurological disorders, spinal injuries, complex trauma, cancers and a range of chronic conditions. When such a vital facility becomes non-functional, the entire treatment chain collapses. Doctors are left waiting, patients are left suffering, and clinical decisions are forced into dangerous delays.
The most disturbing aspect is not just the breakdown but the fact that the entire Jammu division depends on a single MRI machine located at GMC Jammu, despite the establishment of four new GMCs at Kathua, Rajouri, Udhampur and Doda. These institutions exist largely as buildings and signboards, without the essential diagnostic muscle that defines a functional medical college. Hospitals do not merely refer to structures; they encompass services, equipment, and the capacity to treat patients comprehensively. The contrast with the Kashmir division, where multiple MRI machines are operational across public hospitals, is glaring. This comparison is not meant to pit one region against another, but it raises unavoidable questions for those involved in health planning and decision-making. Why has Jammu been left so critically underserved? What explains this persistent disparity in the allocation of high-end diagnostic equipment?
It is worth recalling that even the existing Philips 3-Tesla MRI at GMC Jammu was installed only after years of hue and cry, when the two-decade-old machine could no longer bear the crushing workload. That lesson appears to have been forgotten. With patient inflow from all districts, GMC Jammu needs at least two MRI machines operational at all times. Expecting one machine to serve an entire division is nothing but a policy failure. Referring patients to private diagnostic centres is no solution. Critically ill or injured patients cannot be shuttled outside. Public healthcare cannot outsource its core responsibilities. The Government must intervene immediately-not with temporary arrangements, but with decisive action. An additional MRI machine must be installed at GMC Jammu without delay, and every GMC in the Jammu division must be equipped with at least one MRI facility. This sorry state of affairs cannot be allowed to continue.
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