November 7, 2024

Telangana Junior Doctors Announce Indefinite Strike Over Unmet Demands and Stipend Delays

Following an official strike notice submission during a meeting with the Director of Medical Education (DME), the Telangana Junior Doctors Association (T-JUDA) announced an indefinite strike beginning on June 24. After several unfulfilled demands in spite of prior strike announcements and talks with the authorities, this decision was made. T-JUDA has stressed the importance of junior physicians’ other important concerns, including the prompt release of stipends.

T-JUDA conveyed their dissatisfaction in their statement over the lack of advancement on their demands. Their advocacy involves the establishment of a green channel for budget relaxation, with the goal of ensuring that junior physicians—including house surgeons, postgraduates, and senior residents—receive their stipends on schedule. The association is requesting a Government Order (GO) and a circular from the finance department to ensure that stipends are credited by the 10th of every month, hence preventing financial burden on the junior physicians, according to Dr. G. Sai Harsha, president of T-JUDA.

The Super Specialty Senior Residents’ honorarium is a major additional problem. Students who have finished their super-specialty must be appointed to contract associate professor posts with a salary of Rs.1.25 lakh starting on January 1, 2024, as per T-JUDA requirements. They contend that if this step is not put into effect, the one-year service requirement would be compromised and the doctors will not receive the proper compensation they are entitled to.

The association advocates for equitable admission procedures for students from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and emphasizes the necessity of a 15% reservation in the NEET UG prospectus. They demand that from June 2, 2014, students from Andhra Pradesh should not enroll in the 15% more seats offered by Telangana medical institutes. With this requirement, the long-standing differences in medical college admissions between the two states will be addressed, as well as equitable educational opportunities.

Accommodation shortages for postgraduate students also feature prominently in T-JUDA’s list of demands. The non-commencement of new hostel construction, in contravention of National Medical Commission (NMC) mandates, has led to significant challenges. The junior doctors are calling for a budget allocation for new hostels and the immediate laying of foundation stones for these buildings to alleviate the accommodation crisis.

Another pressing concern is the protracted construction of a new Osmania General Hospital (OGH) facility. T-JUDA contends that urgent action is required due to patient care standards being undermined and congestion. In order to enhance healthcare delivery, they demand that the new hospital building’s funding be allocated and that the foundation stone be laid right away at the new location.

Students, especially those attending faraway colleges, face challenges as a result of the recent growth in government medical colleges being outpaced by the lack of requisite infrastructure. There have been serious transportation problems from the dorms, which are located off campus, and on field trips. T-JUDA urges that these transportation needs be met immediately by allocating funds and purchasing buses.

The junior doctors also voice concerns regarding the Kakatiya Medical College’s facilities in Warangal. They draw attention to the fact that there have been several proposals for the construction of highways on the college’s grounds. Nothing has changed even after Health Minister C. Damodar Raja Narasimha promised that the roads would be constructed after the election. The necessity of this demand is highlighted by the frequent accidents caused by inadequate road infrastructure. To protect workers and kids, T-JUDA demands that these roads be built right away.

The decision to strike came after a previous walkout in which the government refused to issue a government order, citing the Model Code of Conduct as justification. It was requested that the junior doctors postpone their strike until after the election code period ended. But after they published their last notification, which was over a month ago, not much has changed. According to Dr. Harsha, junior doctors have no choice but to restart their protest on June 24 due to the government’ ongoing apathy.The widespread problems with the healthcare system and the pressing need for systemic changes are reflected in this strike. Junior doctors have demands related to safe and efficient healthcare delivery in addition to financial and professional issues. The strike is an appeal to the authorities to take immediate action to resolve these problems and to put the required policies in place to help the junior physicians who are essential to the healthcare system.

SOURCE:

THE HINDU

 

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