New Delhi: Delhi government today imposed Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) on around 15,000 resident doctors who continued their strike on the second day.
The doctors belonging to Delhi government, Central government and MCD run hospitals are demanding adequate life saving drugs, security at workplace and timely payment of their salaries.
The strike by resident doctors at 20 hospitals including Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Safdarjung Hospital, Lady Hardinge Medical College, Maulana Azad Medical College affected services at the facilities.
A meeting between Delhi's minister of health and family welfare Satyendra Jain and representatives of doctors' umbrella body Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) failed to yield any result yesterday.
However, Jain today said that the government has accepted 24 of the demands made by the doctors. He said that the strike must to be motivated by something else if they still not call it off.
FORDA issued a statement in the morning, “Deficiencies still persist and till further discussion with the Delhi state government, central government and MCD for resolution of these deficiencies, FORDA decides to continue the ongoing agitation for the welfare of people and the health care system of this state.”
FORDA Vice President Dr Amar Shekhar said that if there id no positive response from the government till evening, they would run a parrellel OPD.
He refused to react on the government's move to impose ESMA.
The strike has severely affected medical services in the capital even though the leave of senior doctors was cancelled.
The doctors had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Union Health Minister J P Nadda giving them a June 21 deadline.
"As there has been no response from their side, we have been forced to go on strike," said a doctor from Maulana Azad Medical College yesterday.
On February 27, resident doctors had gone on a day-long strike over similar issues but it was called off after both the Centre and the state government held a meeting and discussed their issues.
