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Doctors firm on mass resignation

BHUBANESWAR: With barely six days left for doctors’ mass resignation becoming ‘effective’ in Orissa, the stalemate continues as three rounds of talks between Orissa Medical Services Association (OMSA) and State government have failed to yield any result.

Replying to a question and concerns raised by members on Thursday, Health Minister Sanatan Bisi said as many as 2,110 doctors had submitted resignation through OMSA in support of their 19-point charter of demands with a condition that the resignation letters may be treated as one month notice and to treat the resignation as effective from March 19.

Office-bearers of OMSA held discussions with Minister and secretaries of finance and health department, he informed.

“Steps are being taken to find negotiative solutions to the issue,” Mr. Bisi said. OMSA, however, was not convinced with the results of the talk. “We will surely go by our mass resignation declaration. The State government should have to inform us in advance, otherwise doctors will not compromise this time,” Siba Prasad Singh, general secretary of OMSA, told The Hindu here.

Dr. Singh said the association members were prepared to meet only with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for solution as all options had so far been explored. “Mr. Patnaik himself announced a slew of measures for improvement of service conditions of doctors last year. But 11 months have elapsed, but promises have not been materialised,” he said.

OMSA was certainly not going to postpone its agitation with the promises of State government, a statement detailing time-bound action should be presented by the Chief Minister, Dr. Singh said. Stating that long resentments that had been building up for years exploded now, he said SMS services was introduced to inform doctors to chart out their future course of action as deadline was nearing.

Sources said Finance Department did not agree to hike of doctors’ salary on par with the doctors working under Central government.

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