Junior doctors’ fast enters third day

HYDERABAD: The hunger strike by six government junior doctors here entered the third day on Friday. Meanwhile, medicos have been continuing the boycott of elective duties, which include attend

HYDERABAD: The hunger strike by six government junior doctors here entered the third day on Friday. Meanwhile, medicos have been continuing the boycott of elective duties, which include attending on out-patients and patients admitted to wards, at all the teaching hospitals in the state for 16th day.

Their main demands include a hike in their stipend, regularisation of stipend and slashing the period of compulsory rural service from three years to one year.

``We wanted to attend to emergency duties during the protest period to send a message to the people that junior doctors are more concerned about public health than the government is,'' Junior Doctors Association (JUDA) joint action committee convener MI Abhilash has said.

Speaking with Express, Abhilash said they decided against boycotting the emergency duties in consideration for poor people visiting government teaching hospitals for treatment. ``But, we are ready to put our lives at risk by continuing the fast until the state government responds to our demands,'' he said, adding that no representative from either the government or from Gandhi Hospital came to monitor the health of the fasting medicos.

However, Gadar, Nagam Janardhan Reddy and K Harishwar Reddy and K Nageshwar (MLC) visited the hunger strike camp.

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