Robotics is poised to move far beyond the operating theatre and become a key tool across virtually every branch of medicine.
Union Science & Technology Minister Jitendra Singh envisaged this, calling for a future shaped by robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), nanoscience and precision medicine.
Addressing the inaugural session of the International Conference of the Society of Robotic Surgery (SRS India 2026), Singh said robotics should not be viewed merely as a surgical technology but as a broader medical tool with applications spanning diagnostics, treatment and therapy.
“It’s a tool. It will happen everywhere,” he said, pointing to the potential emergence of robotic medicine, robotic endocrinology and robotic cardiology as the technology expands into different specialties.
Singh said medicine is entering a new era driven by frontier technologies.
He said the convergence of robotics, AI and nanoscience could create a larger ecosystem for precision health delivery, allowing treatment to become increasingly personalised on the basis of a patient's genetic profile, environmental conditions, lifestyle and dietary patterns.
The Minister said the 21st century has already ushered in major advances in AI, biotechnology and nuclear medicine, with the next phase expected to bring wider use of genetic diagnostics, quantum technologies, nanomedicine and robotics.
He stressed that precision medicine will increasingly move away from a one-size-fits-all approach. Even patients diagnosed with the same disease, he said, may require different treatment strategies based on their individual genetic and environmental profiles.
Highlighting the Genome India Programme, Singh said 10,000 individuals have already been sequenced and expressed hope that India could eventually undertake gene sequencing for every newborn.
For a country of 1.4 billion people, he said, such an ambitious exercise would require the optimal use of AI and robotics.
Singh also underlined the potential of robotics and tele-robotics to overcome India's vast geographical and healthcare-access challenges.
Sharing his experience with robotic ultrasonography, he said he had performed an ultrasound on a person located 10,000 kilometres away in Antarctica, illustrating how remotely enabled technologies could bring advanced medical expertise to patients in difficult-to-reach locations.
Describing what could be a fundamental shift in the traditional doctor-patient model, Singh said, “Instead of the patient being referred to the doctor, it will be the doctor being referred to the patient.”
He said tele-robotics could eventually allow specialist expertise to reach patients across geographical boundaries, reducing the need for patients to travel long distances for advanced medical care.
Singh also highlighted nanomedicine's potential to tackle longstanding therapeutic challenges. Referring to efforts to develop oral insulin, he said advances at the nano level could help overcome limitations in conventional drug delivery and open new avenues for treatment.
He also pointed to India's changing disease burden, where infectious diseases increasingly coexist with metabolic and lifestyle-related disorders. Conditions traditionally associated with older age are now being seen among younger populations, he said, underscoring the need for a more integrated, technology-enabled approach to healthcare.
Singh said India's enormous size, diversity and geographical spread make AI, robotics and tele-robotics particularly relevant to the country's healthcare needs.
He described AI and robotics as powerful facilitatory tools that could help India expand access to advanced healthcare while accelerating the shift towards precision and personalised medicine.
Congratulating the organisers of SRS India 2026, Singh said bringing robotic surgery into institutional learning, academic discussion and professional platforms was an important step as medicine rapidly embraces emerging technologies.
