Trainee doctors go on indefinite strike over allowance hike
They will also go on a hunger strike at Shaheed Minar on Sunday.
Postgraduate private trainee doctors went on an indefinite strike on Saturday demanding a hike in their monthly allowance to Tk50,000 from Tk20,000.
Trainee doctors under the banner of the Postgraduate Private Trainee Doctors Association staged a sit-in demonstration at the Central Shaheed Minar at noon.
At the programme, they urged the government to provide the monthly allowance on a regular basis.
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They will also go on a hunger strike at the same venue from 10am on Sunday.
According to the association, around 8,500 doctors working in various government medical colleges and health institutions have joined the strike.
Dr Zabir Hossian, president of the association, said the current monthly allowance of Tk20,000 is inadequate and it should be raised to Tk50,000 to align with market rates. So, we have been discussing the issue with all authorities concerned for the past six months. But we did not get any satisfactory response."
"We will continue our strike until the government issues a gazette notification regarding allowance increase for postgraduate trainee doctors," he said.
Agitating doctors said the government has a strict policy that private postgraduate doctors cannot work outside during this training period. As a result, the doctors cannot meet the cost of living with the current salary as commodity prices have gone up significantly.
So they urged the government to accept their demands and help them focus on their medical services.
Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) Director Brigadier General Nazmul Haque told The Business Standard the pressure on doctors to provide services to patients is increasing as trainee doctors go on an indefinite strike.
He further said, "We have a significant number of trainee doctors. At a time when the number of dengue patients is increasing in hospitals, trainee doctors are on strike. So, the pressure is increasing on our doctors to provide services."
The DMCH Director urged the Health Ministry to take the initiative to solve the matter quickly to ensure medical services to patients.
A total of 2,502 dengue patients, including 1,773 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.
