Other States - Orissa   

Striking doctors lock up two offices

BERHAMPUR: The medical services at hospitals attached to the three government medical colleges in Orissa were hit drastically as the junior doctors intensified their seven-day-old strike on Tuesday.

They threatened to start hunger strike if the State Government did not heed their demands. On Tuesday the principals and superintendents of SCB medical college and MKCG medical college had to face the ire of junior doctors. At SCB medical college they were gheraoed. Cease-work and demonstration by junior doctors also continued in the VSS medical college, Burla.

These junior doctors are demanding hike of their stipend which they want to be made at par with the pay packet of assistant surgeons posted in the state.

The striking junior doctors of MKCG medical college were not satisfied with the only gherao of their principal and superintendent. They also locked up the offices of the principal and superintendent of the medical college.

They said they would intensify their agitation further as the State Government was not taking their strike seriously although it had hit the health services drastically at the three medical college hospitals in the State. They decided hunger strike as their next weapon of agitation. But they are yet to decide the date of hunger strike.

The superintendent of the MKCG medical college, J.K.Behera also accepted before newsmen that strike of junior doctors had affected medical services severely. He said the inflow of patients had decreased as patients and their relatives were not confident about services at the hospital of the medical college.

Despite requests of medical college authorities to the health department no doctor posted in peripheral medical centres had reached the medical college on deputation by Tuesday afternoon.

The health services in the State may be hit further as the nursing association of the State has threatened to go on indefinite strike from Wednesday. The radiographers of government hospitals have also threatened to go on mass leave from March 28 for the fulfilment of their demands.

The homeopathy, ayurveda and veterinary doctors of the State have also threatened to launch agitation demanding their pay scales to be made at par with recently hiked pay of allopath doctors.

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