The junior doctors’ strike could not last for 24 hours and it was called off in the evening after having received assurance in favour of their demands from Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Madhya Pradesh-Junior Doctors Association (MP-JDA) office bearers met CM Chouhan on Friday evening where CM assured that they would resume work from Saturday after a day’s strike.
Along with the Chief Minister, Medical Education Minister Anup Mishra was also present in the meeting. Chouhan assured that stipend will be increased by around Rs 4,000 and provisions will be made for providing allowance similar to DA. MP-JDA President Dr Adarsh Bajpai said that junior doctors’ demands have been accepted by the state government and CM Chouhan has forwarded the matter to finance department.
Earlier, since morning, hospitals in state remained paralyzed on Friday as the junior doctors were on strike. The hospitals’ administrations posted senior doctors for work in OPD and other wards but still large number of patients had to return without getting examined.
Gandhi Medical College (GMC) administration posted all the senior doctor and specialist for hospital duty but still the patients complaint that doctors kept them sending to other doctors. Patients also alleged that senior doctors asked them to come tomorrow for treatment. Patients who were checked by doctors claimed that they had to wait for hours before getting examined.
In Hamidia hospital only five major operations were carried out while usually upto 18 operations are done, three minor operations were carried out while usually 15 operations are done. Number of patients checked and treated in OPD was just a little less than usual since senior doctors were posted in OPDs, 1000 patients were checked on Friday while usually 1200 patients are treated.
In Sultania hospital only eight deliveries are carried out while usually more than 20 deliveries are carried out.