Stipend Revision: MP Junior doctors suspend strike until March 16
Strike
Bhopal: Following talks between a delegation of the Junior Doctors’ Association (JDA) and Rajendra Shukla, Deputy Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, the state-wide strike by junior doctors in Government medical colleges has been temporarily suspended. The association has decided to defer its protest until March 16, after assurances from the State Government regarding stipend revision and pending arrears.
Medical Dialogues had previously reported that nearly 8,000 junior resident doctors, senior residents, and interns are participating in a protest against the pending revision of stipends. Due to the ongoing protest, medical services at government-run hospitals across Madhya Pradesh have been largely affected.
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JDA representatives warned that if the Government fails to issue formal orders by March 16, they will resume the agitation with greater intensity across all Government-run medical institutions in the state.
The strike caused widespread disruptions across medical college hospitals, leaving patients waiting for hours or returning without receiving treatment. According to the news reports, at Gandhi Medical College and its associated Hamidia Hospital in Bhopal, more than 20 scheduled surgeries had to be cancelled or postponed as junior doctors abstained from routine duties. On a typical day, the hospital performs over 60 surgeries, but by evening, only around three dozen procedures have been completed.
While emergency services, including cesarean deliveries, continued uninterrupted, outpatient departments were forced to operate from makeshift tents, leaving patients queuing for hours under the sun.
A patient suffering from leg pain said he had been "wandering since morning, distressed and unable to get treatment." His ordeal reflected the frustration of many others caught between the protest and the hospital's reduced capacity. Expectant mothers waited nervously, surgical patients saw their procedures postponed, and those seeking routine care were left in limbo. Hospital officials insisted "life-saving services were not compromised," but the disruption amid the strike underscored the critical dependence on junior doctors for essential patient care, reports TOI.
The JDA delegation met with the Deputy Chief Minister and the Health Commissioner to discuss the issues in detail. Kuldeep Gupta, former president of JUDA, stated that the Government exhibited a positive stance and promised swift administrative action, according to The Hitavada.
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