The Provincial Medical Health Services (PMHS), an association of Government doctors has alleged that norms were not followed in the recent transfers of medical officers in the State Health services. The association asked the State Government to review these transfers.
In an open meeting of the association which was held at its Chandan Nagar based office on Monday. the doctors vented their anger on large scale transfers of the Government. The doctors also alleged favouritism as some doctors who are serving for many years in the places of their choices in plain districts remained untouched in these transfers.
The president of the PMHS, Dr SK Goswami said the transfer policy of doctors clearly mentioned that not more than 20 per cent transfers should be done at one time but more than 40 per cent of total doctors were transferred in the recent orders. He further alleged lack of transparency in the transfers as for the first time individual transfer orders were issued instead of releasing one consolidated list.
“The PMHS was not taken into confidence before the transfers. There appears a clear pick and chose in the recent transfers. Many doctors who had served for years in mountainous locations and were posted for very few months in the hospitals located in plain districts are again transferred to hills in this reshuffle. There is no transparency and no rule was followed in these transfers,’’ he said.
The PMHS president also questioned rationale behind allowing some doctors to remain in places of their choice on medical grounds. He said such ‘ill’ doctors should be transferred to other plain districts if the Department finds them not fit to work in mountainous areas or should be given voluntary retirement from services.
The PMHS has warned that it would be forced to undertake an agitation if the State Government failed to address the issue.
Recently, 241 doctors were transferred by the State Health Department making it the biggest reshuffle in the history of the State. In these transfers 171 doctors from the hospitals located in plain areas were transferred to mountainous places while 70 medical offices serving in mountainous locations from last many years were sent to hospitals located in plain areas. The Department has clearly told the transferred doctors to join new place of posting before June 30 failing which disciplinary action would be initiated against them.