VIJAYAWADA: The indefinite strike by doctors from Primary Health Centres (PHCs) and the Andhra Pradesh Vaidya Vidhana Parishad (APVVP) was called off on Thursday after Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav gave firm assurances on meeting their key demands. The strike, which began on October 3 following protests that started on September 28, had disrupted healthcare services across AP.
The Joint Action Committee (JAC) of striking doctors announced the withdrawal of the strike in Amaravati after a high-level meeting with the Health Minister. The JAC delegation, comprising Ravindra Nayak, Vinod, Kishore, Rohit, Jayaprakash, Vivek, Ajay and others, presented their charter of demands, with the continuation of the in-service quota for postgraduate medical admissions topping the list.
Minister Yadav assured that the in-service quota for PG admissions would be retained at 20 per cent for 2025–26 and 15 per cent for 2026–27. He also announced that admissions to previously suspended Diplomate of National Board (DNB) courses would resume soon.
Other key assurances included the implementation of time-bound promotions, payment of notional increments, clearance of pending salaries from the COVID-19 period, and the reduction of the urban service eligibility requirement to five years. The Minister confirmed that doctors who completed diploma courses before joining service would be eligible for corresponding super-specialty courses under the Entry of Lateral (EOL) provision.
Yadav further said that doctors’ associations would be considered stakeholders in future policy decisions related to service matters.
Following internal discussions, the JAC decided to end the agitation immediately. The leaders expressed regret for the inconvenience caused to the public and thanked the Health Minister for his proactive role in resolving their long-pending grievances.