Gujarat Shocker: 67 percent MBBS doctors skipped bond service duty, Govt to recover Rs 38.15 crore

Providing exact figures, the government has informed that only 608 out of 1,879 MBBS doctors reported for duty in 2020 and 2021 and the Government has to recover an amount of Rs 38.15 crore from those absent doctors as bond payment, reports TOI.

Such revelations were made by the State Government on Tuesday while replying to the questions in the ongoing budget session of the assembly.

The data provided by the Government reveals that after studying in the Government-run medical institutes, around 67-68% of MBBS graduates did not report for government duty in government hospitals.

Also Read: Medical College Should be Welfare State: Gujarat HC over Bond Amount Dispute

As per the latest media report by the Times of India, the maximum number of such doctors, who skipped the mandatory bond service, got their postings in Dahod district. To be more specific, a total number of 392 doctors received postings in that district and among them 323 doctors did not join duties, revealed the Government data.

Similar condition is found in the case of Chhota Udepur district as well. The Government data reveals that a total number of 176 doctors did not join duty in Chhota Udepur among the total number of 270 doctors, who were posted in there.

As per the bond condition, executed at the time of MBBS admission in Government-run medical colleges, the students skipping bond service would be liable to pay an amount to the Government. Taking all the 1,271 doctors, who did not join their duties, into account, the Government has to recover an amount of Rs 38.15 crore as bond payment from these doctors.

Meanwhile, MLAs belonging to opposition party Congress has claimed that the State Government is not doing enough for recovering the amount pending against mandatory bond service of these MBBS doctors.

Medical Dialogues had reported last year that around 799 out of 1,415 bonded doctors had failed to join COVID duties despite Government's order of appointing them as Class-I posts of experts to deal with the shortage of manpower. Following this, the Commissioner of Health, medical services and medical education issued an order on June 20 last year to all district health officers and medical officers of municipal corporations, and asked them to difrect concerned police stations to lodge FIRs against these doctors under provisions of the Epidemic Disease Act, 1897.