'Quite Shocking': Delhi High Court Finds 400 Ventilators, 910 Oxygen Concentrators Lying Unused At Govt Hospital

The Delhi High Court has flagged large quantum of medical equipment lying unused across 26 government hospitals in the national capital, including 400 ventilators and 910 oxygen concentrators alone at Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital.A division bench comprising Justice Prathiba M Singh and Justice Manmeet PrItam Singh Arora observed that several hospitals were unable to use equipment due to lack of technical manpower, accessories or principal equipment.The Bench said that in some hospitals such as Delhi State Cancer Institute, the amount of equipment lying unused was “extremely high” and it was not clear as to why such expensive equipment was lying unused and what steps have been taken by the hospitals or the Delhi Government's Services Department to provide the manpower required for operating them.“The unused equipment is also extremely critical and is to be used in diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The said equipment appear to be manufactured by globally well-known companies and it is unclear as to why such equipment is being permitted to lie unused after enormous investment having been made into the same,” it added. The Court was hearing a batch of matters concerning healthcare infrastructure and public health facilities in the national capital.The Bench noted that a detailed list submitted by the Delhi Government revealed that a large quantity of equipment across 26 hospitals was not being used.Regarding GTB Hospital alone, the Court noted that even the ECG machine was non-functional and there was no other ECG machine mentioned in the report. It said that the hospital, in all likelihood, is functioning without an ECG machine, which is an extremely important piece of equipment for a healthcare institution.The Court noted that the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital and Ch. Brahm Prakash Ayurved Charak Sansthan were facing a situation where almost all the equipment and machines were lying unused.On this, the Court directed the Secretary of Delhi Government's Department of Health & Family Welfare, and Secretary of Services Department to hold a joint meeting with the Medical Superintendents or Directors of the 26 hospitals in question. It ordered that the authorities would examine hospital-wise requirements, including providing technical manpower, removal of unused or condemned equipment, re-allocation of equipment to hospitals where it is required, recruitment timelines and provision of missing accessories or principal equipment.“The said meeting shall take place on 17th August, 2026 at 11:30 a.m. in the office of the Secretary, Department of Health & Family Welfare, GNCTD who shall then file a comprehensive status report on all these aspects at least two days before the next date of hearing,” the Court said. Further, on the implementation of NextGen e-Hospital system, the Court noted that its usage varied between hospitals. While 18 hospitals were using more than 10 modules, the remaining 20 hospitals were using between five and 10 modules.HMIS is a platform designed to digitize healthcare workflows, alongside the “Delhi ICU Beds Saarthi” application which reflects real-time data concerning emergency ICU beds across Delhi hospitals.The Court directed the Delhi Government's Health Department to obtain comments from all 38 hospitals on the audit report and file a comprehensive report detailing the steps being taken to remove the deficiencies and timelines for doing so.The matter will now be heard on September 18.Title: Court on its own motion v. Union of India & OrsClick here to read order

'Quite Shocking': Delhi High Court Finds 400 Ventilators, 910 Oxygen Concentrators Lying Unused At Govt Hospital

Nupur Thapliyal

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Nupur Thapliyal

'Quite Shocking': Delhi High Court Finds 400 Ventilators, 910 Oxygen Concentrators Lying Unused At Govt Hospital

Nupur Thapliyal

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Nupur Thapliyal

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