New Delhi: A parliamentary committee on Monday raised serious concerns about the country’s capability to test and regulate radiation-emitting medical devices, urging immediate reforms in the national testing infrastructure. The Standing Committee on Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution revealed significant gaps in the testing framework for critical medical equipment like X-ray and MRI machines in its fifth report submitted to Parliament.
The National Testing House (NTH) currently lacks the expertise and capacity to comprehensively test and certify radiation-emitting medical devices, despite existing regulatory oversight from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) and the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO).
The committee recommended establishing a collaborative framework between NTH, AERB, and CDSCO to address the identified regulatory shortcomings.
Key recommendations include developing specialised testing capabilities at NTH, investing in advanced testing infrastructure, implementing targeted staff training programs and creating partnerships with leading research institutions.
The report also highlighted the limited geographical spread of NTH testing facilities, which are currently concentrated in only six cities: Ghaziabad, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Jaipur, Guwahati, and Mumbai.
The parliamentary panel urged the establishment of at least one testing centre in each state, calling for increased funding and more effective utilization of the NTH scheme to expand testing facilities nationwide.
