The delay in appointment orders of newly-recruited medical officers in the department of health and family welfare could cause problems for the health services of State reeling under acute shortage of doctors.
The department had conducted a three-day process of counseling for allotting hospitals to the newly-recruited doctors which ended on February 28. After allotment, the department had sent the list to the State Government which is sitting over it for last one month.
The delay in clearance of the list is fueling speculation among the candidates that something dubious could happen in postings. The department tried its best to keep the process of appointment transparent by organising the counseling.
The Director General (DG) of State health services Dr GS Joshi said the department had not got the list from the State Government till Thursday afternoon. The department would get 282 new medical officers soon, he added.
The senior department officials are of the view that due to further delay and loss of transparency in the postings many new medicos could prefer not to join the health services of State which could jeopardize the department plans to increase doctors.
In last recruitment drive of medical officers more than 80 per cent selected doctors did not joined their duties due to a big delay in the process of appointment, To fill vacant posts of doctors the public service commission issued notification for recruitment of 747 medical officers and finally selected 421 doctors for appointments. In the counseling process only 282 doctors appeared with the necessary documents.The health services of the State would be benefited by the infusion of these 282 doctors.
At present the state has 1842 sanctioned posts of medical officers (MOs) and against these posts only 460 MOs are working in the State. Similarly out of sanctioned posts of 1241 specialists doctors 836 are vacant.