Vellore, June 24, 2025 – The Christian Medical College (CMC) Vellore officially inaugurated the PARAM Shavak Supercomputer at the Department of Radiation Oncology (CMC Vellore Ranipet Campus), marking a significant milestone in enhancing computational capabilities for medical research at the institute. This milestone is a collaborative effort between the Quantitative Imaging Research and Artificial Intelligence Lab (QIRAIL) and the Biomedical Informatics Unit (BMIU). The need for collaborative work between physicians, physicists and computational scientists was stressed, leading to benefits in health care, patient care, education, and ultimately enhancing research in artificial intelligence in healthcare, which is the need of the hour.

The programme began with a prayer, followed by a welcome address from Dr. Simon Pavamani, Head of QIRAIL, Radiation Oncology Unit II. Principal Solomon Sathishkumar emphasised the importance of collaboration among physicians, physicists, and computational scientists to advance patient care, education, and AI research in healthcare. Dr. Joy Mammen (Head, BMIU) and Dr. Thomas Samuel (Head, Radiation Oncology) also addressed the audience. Dr. Vidya Konduru presented an ICMR-funded AI research project on oral cancer recurrence, on behalf of Principal Investigator Dr. Amit Tirkey.

A technical demonstration of the PARAM Shavak Supercomputer’s cutting-edge features and capabilities was given by Mr. Deepu C V, Associate Director and Scientist F, HPC Business Development at C-DAC Pune, followed by a live demonstration of its use in radiotherapy by Dr. Hannah Mary Thomas, Scientist, BMIU, and Research Lead, QIRAIL.

“This collaborative partnership between two giants—CMC and C-DAC—demonstrates their commitment to truly embracing the vision for a self-reliant India”, stated Dr. Lakshmi Panat, Associate Director, C-DAC, emphasising the significance of this partnership.