Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh, on April 06, 2026, laid the foundation stones of Ophthalmology, Oncology and Joint Replacement Centres at Army Hospital (Research & Referral) and new infrastructure at Base Hospital, Delhi Cantt as part of the 262nd Army Medical Corps Raising Day celebrations. The state-of-the-art facilities at Army Hospital (Research & Referral) are envisaged to significantly enhance the tertiary care capabilities of the Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS), particularly in the domains of advanced eye care, cancer treatment, and complex joint replacement surgeries, while the new hospital infrastructure at Base Hospital is being developed with a capacity of 998 beds along with an additional 100 crisis expansion beds, to address routine and emergency healthcare requirements of the Defence Forces personnel .
In his address, Raksha Mantri underlined the importance of continued innovation, capacity building, and integration of modern technologies to meet the emerging challenges in military medicine. He exuded confidence that the new facilities, equipped with modern technologies and infrastructure, will provide quality medical care to the serving personnel, veterans & their dependents.
Shri Rajnath Singh commended the dedication, professionalism, and compassion of the AFMS personnel for rendering services to every nook and corner of the country, from towering mountains to inaccessible forests, from times of peace to moments of disaster. He appreciated them for organising medical camps across the country and neighboring nations, including Nepal, while specially mentioning the successful conduct of glaucoma surgeries and eye care services. “Such initiatives strengthen our ties with friendly nations while simultaneously bringing about positive transformations in the lives of people. Your services have emerged as a powerful testament to India’s ‘soft power’,” he said.
While Raksha Mantri reiterated the Government’s commitment to providing world-class healthcare facilities for the soldiers & their families, and termed it as top priority, he exhorted AFMS to lay special emphasis on ‘research’, stressing on the integration of modern medical science with ancient philosophy to present a truly effective healthcare model to the public. “Under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the nation has made significant strides in the medical domain, from continuous expansion of healthcare infrastructure, increase in the number of institutions such as AIIMS to the access of healthcare facilities to everyone through the Ayushman Card, and advancements in fields such as cancer treatment, bypass surgery, and critical care. However, when it comes to frontier technologies and deep research, we still have a long journey ahead. For instance, in cancer research, specifically early detection technologies and personalised medicine, several countries are currently ahead of us. We also must further strengthen our capabilities in developing advanced predictive models for cardiovascular diseases, as well as in neuro-research related to mental health,” he said.
Underscoring the importance of achieving self-reliance in the pharmaceuticals sector, Shri Rajnath Singh asserted that while India is a major global supplier of medicines, dependency on external sources remains evident in the fields of high-end drug innovation and original research. He highlighted the need to move beyond generic production and focus on fostering an innovation-driven pharmaceutical ecosystem. He added that concurrently, priority must be given to the discovery of new drugs, strengthening of clinical research, and adoption of global quality standards. He endorsed the integration of MSMEs and start-ups into the pharmaceutical innovation landscape, development of robust testing infrastructure, and cultivation of a skilled workforce. This approach will not only fulfill domestic requirements but also enable India to emerge as a global leader in these sectors, he said.
