Nagpur: After several orders by the Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court, somehow now the tender process has been completed to install a robotic surgery unit in the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH). Due to non-availability of work order, it could not be installed till now. After drawing the High Court’s attention to the matter on Thursday, Justice Sunil Shukre and Justice Vrushali Joshi ordered Haffkine Institute to install the robotic surgery system in the medical facility by March 15.
The HC ordered the Managing Director of Haffkine Institute, Abhimanyu Kale, to remain present in the court during the next hearing along with the answer why strict action should not be taken if the order is not followed. The HC directed Kale to ensure that the robotic machinery is in place at GMCH within a week’s time or latest by March 15, 2023.
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Tuesday18 March 2025
The unit was sanctioned in 2017 and Rs 16.80 crore funds were released for the same in 2019. After Dr Raj Gajbhiye took over as the Dean of GMCH last year, the project was again revived as he ensured the additional funds of Rs 3 crore was allotted for it. Yet, Haffkine kept the procurement process stalled despite GMCH depositing a total Rs 21 crore and the tender processes being completed.
The robot would be set up in the Department of Surgery in GMCH, which would be the first medical teaching institute in Maharashtra to have the technology. A robotic surgery costs around Rs 5 lakh. The painless technique will be available free of cost at GMCH. Due to the delay on the part of Haffkine not just patients remained at a loss, but it also deprived medical students of hands-on training of the advanced minimal access technique. The high-end machine purchase takes just 30 days for procurement and installation in a private set up.
The robotic arm can perform complex surgeries like colorectal operation, prostatic surgeries, oesophagus with precision.
During the hearing, the court ordered the lawyer representing Haffkine to get information about when the robotic surgery system would be installed. The court believed that the tender process has been completed in this context. Even the fund of Rs 21 crore is lying. Although a petition was filed in the High Court challenging the tender process, on January 9, 2023, the High Court rejected this petition last month. Due to this, there is no justification for keeping the matter pending. Strange information has been revealed during the hearing. Information was received about the file lying on the table of the Managing Director for final signature. As soon as it is signed, the work order can be issued to the lowest bidder.
Haffkine’s apathy towards procurement of robotic arms came to the fore before the court too. It failed to give a date of issuing a work order or installation before the court on Thursday. The only remaining hurdle in the process is the signature of Haffkine Managing Director Kale. Haffikine’s counsel KS Narwade informed the court that he couldn’t contact Kale to get a final date of installation. The division bench of Justice Sunil Shukre and Justice Vrushali Joshi then set the deadline for Haffinkine, and warned of coercive action against Kale in case of non-compliance of the order.
