The junior doctors on strike at risk of severe penalty
The junior doctors refused to call off the strike as their demands were not met.The strike aims at a stipend hike for them.The representatives of junior doctors had a meeting with Health Minister Surya Kanta Mishra but that failed to resolve the issue at hand.Reportedly,the three-member committee set up to look into the matter assured the junior doctors that their demand will be considered following which a recommendation would be submitted to the Health Minister.Apparently,the Health Minister would implement the recommendations upon receiving them.
The junior doctors stated that the strike will continue indefinitely until they receive a written assurance from the concerned authority.The doctors want the promise of stipend hike in clear-cut terms with the specific mention of the exact amount of increase.
According to the reports, B C Roy Hospital and the Bankura Medical College are contemplating to join the strike and this has caused concern to the authorities.since the number of doctors on strike amounts to around eight hundred,provision of health care facilities have been severely disrupted.The poor people are at the receiving end since both the hospitals are government run public sector hospitals.Reportedly,an NGO is contemplating to file a Public Interest Litigation against the strike.However,the junior doctors are reported to have initiated parallel outdoor patient treatment facilities for all departments at the SSKM and the calcutta Medical College.
The refusal to call off the strike even after the announcement of the stipend revision has invited the wrath of the medical authorities and strict punitive measures are being considered for the junior doctors on strike.Most importantly,the post graduate trainees who joined the strike are liable to be barred from undertaking their term examinations.The authorities will impose these measures as exemplary penalty so that these kind of situations can be avoided in future.