Bhubaneswar: The agitating doctors called off the two-hour OPD boycott launched by them across Odisha on Thursday following talks with the state government.
The Odisha Medical Services Association (OMSA), under whose banner the government doctors were protesting, decided to withdraw the strike following detailed discussion with Health and Family Welfare Minister Mukesh Mahaling.
In a major relief to patients across the state, OMSA said normal outpatient department services at government hospitals will resume from Friday.
The decision was taken after a meeting between representatives of the doctors’ association and the Health Minister. The discussions focused on the demands raised by doctors related to service conditions and workplace issues.
Stating that a high-level committee has already been constituted to examine the demands made by the doctors, Mahaling said that the committee will thoroughly examine the demands and soon submit its recommendations to the government.
He said the government has assured the doctors that the recommendations of the committee will be implemented. “Following this assurance, the doctors have decided to withdraw the strike, said Mahaling.
Describing the talks held with the Minister as positive and fruitful, OMSA president Dr Kishore Mishra said the government has given assurances on fulfilling the demands. Many of the demands are expected to be met by this evening. For now, the agitation has been suspended, and normalcy is expected to return from tomorrow, he said.
With the strike being withdrawn, healthcare services across government hospitals are expected to return to normal from tomorrow. This will end the two-hour daily OPD shutdown that had disrupted patient care over the past few days.
The government doctors, under the banner of OMSA, had launched one-hour OPD boycott every day on December 26 to press for the fulfillment of their ten-point charter of demands. Subsequently, they extended the boycott period to two hours, severely affecting patient care services in government hospitals.
In a move to put an end to the strike by doctors, the state government invoked the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA), prohibiting strikes and cease work agitations in the health sector for six months. Despite this, doctors have continued their protest, posing a major challenge for the administration.
Their demands are as follows:
1. Equal pay scales matching those of central government employees, including the removal of Level-15 (as applicable to other Class-I officers in the Odisha government) without any preconditions.
2. Proportional restructuring of cadres across all grades.
3. Additional financial incentives for super-specialists, specialists, and diploma-holding medical administrators, along with a dedicated postmortem allowance and equivalent Performance-Based Incentives (PBI) for both OMHS and OMES cadres.
4. An exit policy allowing doctors who have served more than three years in the Kalahandi-Balangir-Koraput (KBK), KBK-plus, and tribal sub-plan regions to opt out or transfer.
5. Annual regular recruitment of doctors and ensuring timely promotions.
6. Amendment of the Odisha Medicare Act-2008 to include non-bailable warrants for individuals assaulting doctors.
7. Provision of 24/7 armed security and dedicated police outposts in all healthcare facilities across the state.
8. Additionally, the doctors have sought:Regularisation of ad-hoc appointments.
9. Counting of ad-hoc and contractual service periods toward regular service benefits.
10. Comprehensive health insurance coverage for all healthcare workers.
