Maharashtra doctors decide to end mass leave agitation

Following strong observations by the Bombay High Court, nearly 3,000 resident doctors of 17 government hospitals in Maharashtra have decided to call off their mass casual leave agitation with immediate effect, the doctors' association said here on Tuesday.

"We have always obeyed the court orders and are appealing to all resident doctors to report back for duty as soon as possible," a Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD) spokesperson told IANS.

He said a majority of the resident doctors are likely to resume duties from Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning.

The development came after strong comments by Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice G.S. Kulkarni on the ongoing two-day mass casual leave agitation. The court was hearing a public interest litigation filed by activist Afaq Madaviya on Monday.

After resident doctors took leave to protest frequent attacks on them by aggrieved and irate relatives of patients, it led to major disruptions in healthcare at government hospitals across the state.

Hundreds of scheduled surgeries were postponed and serpentine queues of poor patients were witnessed outside government hospitals.

--IANS

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