Chandigarh Administration conducts interviews of 44 Doctors for medical officer posts

Chandigarh: More than a month after the Chandigarh administration appointed eleven medical officers (MO) and two drug inspectors on deputation from Haryana and Punjab due to staff shortage, the administration has now conducted interviews of 44 doctors from Haryana to fill the vacant posts of medical officers and dental surgeons to meet the staff shortage. 

The interview was conducted to fill 30 vacant posts of medical officers (MOs) and dental surgeons on deputation in Chandigarh, reports the Hindustan Times. 

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After 70 seats from the total 164 posts of MO became vacant, the UT adviser Dharam Pal in February this year sought from the health secretary a new panel of eligible doctors, including senior medical officers, medical officers, and dental surgeons, for deputation from Punjab and Haryana.

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported about the deputation of 11 Medical Officers from Haryana and Punjab to Chandigarh due to a shortage of staff. However, nearly 40 posts out of the total 164 continued to remain vacant even after the appointment. 

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Based on Pal's orders, the UT health secretary had sought panels from Punjab and Haryana and also wrote to the Centre and other UTs seeking new panels of doctors because of the delayed response from Punjab and Haryana. The secretary had also requested the UPSC for direct recruitments. 

The Punjab government in April had sent a batch of 30 MOs (allopathic) and 12 MOs (dental) to the UT administration. In addition to that, one MO from Delhi and two from Himachal Pradesh also applied and came to the interviews. The administration subsequently appointed 30 medical officers (21 in the allopathic category and nine dental surgeons) on deputation from Punjab, one MO allopathic from Delhi, and two allopathic MOs from Himachal Pradesh, to meet the staff shortage in the health department. 

This new panel of 44 doctors who appeared for interviews on Wednesday was sent by the Haryana government in May. It was conducted by a  screening committee, with the health secretary as chairman, and the director of health services and director-principal, GMCH-32, as members, to make sure selections take place without any form of bias. 

The UT health secretary Yashpal Garg told HT, "At present, around 30 of the 164 MO seats are lying vacant. To fill these seats, the screening committee conducted the interviews, scrutinized the record of the candidates and had personal interactions to assess their suitability for deputation in Chandigarh. The recommendations have been placed before the UT adviser for the final decision. He will finalise the appointments."

Meanwhile, the Haryana government had last week written a letter to the UT administration, asking it to maintain the 60:40 ratio between Punjab and Haryana while filling up the vacant posts of MOs and dental surgeons.  

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