Maha Education Minister Vinod Tawde appeals to govt doctors to call off strike

Mumbai: Maharashtra Education Minister Vinod Tawde on Thursday appealed to the resident doctors of government medical colleges to call off their indefinite strike, saying most of their demands have been accepted. “No one will be allowed to imperil patients’ lives,” the minister said, talking to media. [caption id=“attachment_2320020” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Maharashtra Education Minister Vinod Tawre. Agencies[/caption] Additional chief secretary (medical education) Medha Gadgil had spoken to deans of all the government hospitals and she was told that the strike had not affected the medical services, he said. Tawde said that resident doctors wanted ‘bouncers’ at the hospitals to protect them (from irate relatives of patients who sometimes assault doctors). “We have decided to put up flex boards on Doctors Protection Act in casualty, ICU and labour wards and adequate provisions for foolproof security for doctors are being made,” the minister said. Directives had been given to senior doctors and medical superintendents to accompany the resident doctors to police stations for filing FIRs in the case of attack, Tawde said. The government was also positively considering proposal to increase the stipend of resident doctors, he said. “If the stipend is increased by Rs 5,000 (as demanded), the government will have to bear additional burden of Rs 13.70 crore. Out of the Rs 342 crore budget for medical education, Rs 136 crore will be required for stipend,” he said. The demand for paid leave for TB treatment and maternity to resident doctors would be considered only if Medical Council of India agreed, he said. If the demand for reduction of working hours was accepted, the number of resident doctors would have to be increased three times, putting additional financial burden of Rs 253 crore, he said. Nearly 4,000 doctors across Maharashtra have gone on an indefinite strike from on Thursday in support of their various demands. PTI