TDB backs Panacea Medical Technologies to develop a 32-slice CT scanner, reports say

The Technology Development Board (TDB), which sits under the Department of Science and Technology, has signed an agreement with Panacea Medical Technologies Private Limited of Malur, Karnataka, to support the development and commercialisation of an indigenous 32-slice CT scanner, according to reports published on 16 October 2026 by Medical Buyer and Sahyadri Startups. Neither report gave the value of the support, whether it is a loan or a grant, the project timeline or the scanner’s regulatory status. The Healthcare Daily could not find a TDB or government release on the agreement; TDB’s press release listing, checked on 17 October, ran to 29 September 2026.

The project covers the design, development and deployment of a 32-slice CT scanner for diagnostic imaging across various clinical disciplines, the reports said. Both describe Panacea as an Indian medical device manufacturer specialising in radiotherapy and radiology that is set to expand into advanced diagnostic imaging, and both place the agreement within the Make in India initiative, which they say identifies medical devices as a priority sector.

Rajesh Kumar Pathak, Secretary of TDB, said the development of an indigenous CT scanner aligns with the government’s vision and that TDB’s support aims to encourage medical technology companies to develop indigenous solutions, according to Medical Buyer. A Panacea promoter, who was not named, thanked the board and said the collaboration would speed up the company’s work on indigenous diagnostic imaging technology, according to both reports.

Panacea’s record with TDB

This is not the company’s first TDB-backed project. A TDB project page records financial assistance to Panacea for commercialising and setting up a manufacturing line for an indigenous medical LINAC, to develop an indigenous CBCT radiotherapy system for cancer treatment with the Society for Advanced Microwave Electronics Engineering and Research (SAMEER), Mumbai. TDB says that project was later widened to include in-house manufacturing of LINAC tubes. A separate TDB agreement dated 25 May 2022 provided loan assistance of Rs 4.87 crore towards a Rs 9.73 crore project for the development and commercialisation of an S-band tunable magnetron for particle accelerators.

Panacea’s website lists radiotherapy systems, including the Siddharth II and Bhabhatron ranges, and mammography products, including full-field digital mammography with tomosynthesis. It did not list a CT scanner when checked on 17 October.

Domestic CT supply

Panacea would not be the first Indian company to pursue CT manufacturing. Trivitron Healthcare said on 1 July 2024 that its Terrene CT scanner, made at its facility in the Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone in Visakhapatnam, had received approvals from the Bureau of Indian Standards, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, and described itself as the first Indian company to obtain those approvals for CT scanner manufacturing. Medical Buyer argued that domestic development of high-end medical equipment could reduce dependence on imported technologies.

Our reading

• The Healthcare Daily’s reading: for hospitals and diagnostic centres this is a development project, not a product. There is no price, launch date or approval to plan around, so the agreement on its own does not change near-term CT purchasing decisions.
• TDB has backed Panacea on LINACs and a magnetron and, according to the reports, now a CT scanner. Repeat support suggests the board is building on a manufacturer it already knows in radiation hardware rather than starting with a new entrant.
• Trivitron’s 2024 announcement shows the clearances a domestic CT maker has cited: BIS, AERB and CDSCO. Panacea has not said publicly which approvals it will seek or when, and how long they take will matter as much as the engineering.
• For importers and distributors of CT equipment, the signal is the direction of public money towards domestic imaging manufacture. Any effect on public procurement depends on a product reaching approval, which has not been reported here.