Karnataka doctors' strike enters 7th day, medical services paralysed

Bangalore: The state-wide strike by 65,000 government doctors and paramedical staff in Karnataka entered the seventh day on Sunday, affecting hospital services across the state. The government has convened a meeting with representatives of the medical community in Bangalore tomorrow to arrive at a solution.

"The Health and Family Welfare Department has convened a meeting with us tomorrow to thrash out a solution to our demands," GA Srinivas, secretary of the Karnataka Medical Officers' Association told PTI.

Depending on the meeting's outcome, the agitating doctors and paramedical staff would decide whether to continue their strike or not, Mr Srinivas added.

Meanwhile, services across government hospitals in the state were paralysed, with many patients having to wait for medical attention.

On February 7, the government had issued a circular warning the protesting staff that ESMA or the Essential Services Maintenance Act would be invoked if services continued to be disrupted.

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The three main demands of those on strike are that district hospitals - which have been taken over by the Medical Education Department - be brought under the Health and Family Welfare Department, anomalies in the Transfer Act be set right, and that the salaries of the paramedical staff be disbursed by the first of every month.

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