Doctors find support against Rs 10-lakh bond for PG courses

ibune News Service

Shimla, February 4

Doctors in medical colleges supported the protesting resident doctors and opposed the Rs 10-lakh bank guarantee condition for doing postgraduate courses from the IGMC and Dr Rajendra Prasad Medical College, Tanda, today.

The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of the IGMC and Tanda medical college and members of the HP Medical Officers Association (HPMOA) lodged their protest by wearing black badges, expressing solidarity with the resident doctors.

Besides, medical officers in all hospitals wore black badges, demanding the withdrawal of the bank guarantee condition and immediate release of their monthly stipend. They warned the protest would continue.

“We met Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur eight times in a few months and he had given us assurances that the government would resolve the matter. We also took up the matter with Heath Minister Vipin Parmar thrice and Additional Chief Secretary, Health, RD Dhiman as well,” said Dr Ajay Jaryal, president, RDA, IGMC, Shimla.

“But nothing has been done and they have no option other than lodging protest,” he added.

They resented that their monthly stipend had been withheld for the fourth time for the past few months. The college authorities were not releasing stipend on the ground that the residents should first pay the first instalment of Rs 3 lakh of the Rs 10-lakh bank guarantee, which was out of reach for them as they had come for middle-class families, said he.

“The government has not taken any action against the specialists, who left the state and joined other health institutions outside, but it is rigid on our matter,” he added.

HPMOA general secretary Dr Puspinder Verma and its president Dr Jivanand Chauhan said the government should resolve the issue at the earliest.

Parmar and Dhiman could not be contacted despite repeated attempts as their personal assistants said they were busy at meetings in the Vidhan Sabha.