HYDERABAD: The Sindh chapter Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) and Young Doctors Association (YDA) have given the Sindh government one more day to notify promotions, salary enhancement and regularisation of contractual doctors.
At a press conference held at the Hyderabad Press Club here Monday, PMA’s General Secretary Dr Pir Manzoor Ali said that the doctors at government hospitals across the province would boycott Outpatient Departments (OPDs) and the wards from February 13, adding that only emergency wards would remain unaffected by the protest.
“The boycott would continue until the provincial government doesn’t issue notification for the promotions and salary increase,” he underlined.
According to him, the PMA would not hold another round of negotiations with the Sindh government because following the January 30 talks with the provincial health secretary, the government had sought three days to fulfil their demands but they did not do as they had said. “Today 12 days have passed since that assurance but no step has been taken,” he regretted.
Earlier on January 30, Ali had told that their demands had been accepted and that the provincial government would now increase the salaries of doctors to equal what their counterparts were drawing in Punjab.
He had also apprised that the government had agreed to promote 2,000 to 2,500 doctors in the upper grades in BS-18 to BS-20. “Sindh government will be responsible for any inconvenience or problem caused to the patients during the boycott,” he warned.
Ali said the PMA also demanded an end to widespread corruption in the Sindh health department. He was accompanied by the office bearers of PMA and YDA.
