To protest NPA cut, Punjab government doctors boycott health, veterinary services including OPDs July 12-14, July 19 indefinite unrest: The Tribune India

Tribune press service
Chandigarh, July 10

An emergency meeting of the Government Joint Physician Coordinating Committee (JGDCC) held on Saturday decided to shut down health and veterinary services, including OPDs, across Punjab from July 12-14. However, services related to emergencies, Covid, post-mortem and forensic / medical will continue as usual.

Doctors protested the government’s alleged silence and failure to find a meaningful solution to their request for a non-exercise allowance (NPA).

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PCMSA President Dr Gagandeep Singh, Senior Vice President Dr Gagandeep Singh Shergill, President Veterinary Agents Association Dr Sarabjit Singh Randhawa, Dental Association President Dr Pawanpreet Kaur, Ayurvedic Association President Dr Sanjeev Pathak, President of the Homeopathic Association Dr Balwinder Singh and President of the Association of Rural Physicians Dr Deepinder Singh said that due to the “silence” of the government on the issue of the NPA, the JGDCC had been forced to again launch a call to strike.

Considering the convenience of the general public, the committee decided that all state doctors will boycott government OPDs from July 15-17, but hold parallel OPDs on hospital lawns so that needy people are not private health or veterinary services. .

They announced that during the boycott of health services, all state doctors would also donate blood and that zone-based blood donation camps would be organized in the regions of Malwa (July 15), Majha (July 16). and Doaba (July 17).

The Punjab’s health minister recently assured the joint committee to resolve their issues within a week, but no action has been taken so far, they said.

In a statement, JGDCC official Dr Inderveer Gill said the NPA agitation was aimed at saving the public health system. “We will oppose any government initiative to destroy it. State doctors did not want to shut down health and veterinary services, but the government is pursuing an escape policy instead of solving the problem,” said Dr. Sarabdeep Singh, JGDCC Media Officer.

He said the NPA paid to government doctors by the Sixth Compensation Committee had been reduced from 25 percent to 20 percent and had been divorced from base pay, which sparked an uproar among government doctors.

The committee also said that if the government fails to resolve their issues by July 18, all state health doctors and veterinarians will go on an indefinite strike from July 19.