Docs threaten to quit en masse

Members of the Karnataka State Government Medical Officers Association on Sunday said they have decided to resign from the service en masse on September 29. However, they said they would attend to the duty till September 29.

Talking to the media, association president Dr H S Ravindra said around 2,500 of the total 4,100 doctors working under the State Health and Family Welfare department, including specialists, have already submitted their resignation letters to the association and more were coming forward. “We are hopeful that all government doctors will support us and resign from the service,” he stated.

The association, he said, has kept the government informed. But so far neither the government has called for any meeting nor taken any step to fulfil the demands.
Ravindra said their demands include regularisation of doctors working on contract basis, clearing the disparity in salary, and sanctioning of incentives. The government had promised to fulfil all their demands within six months. Though nine months had passed, nothing has been done, he alleged.

Fat pay

Though doctors working under the health and family welfare department were striving for the health care of the rural masses, those working under the medical education department were paid fat salaries, he pointed out.