Junior doctors' strike claims 6 lives in Bihar

Six patients admitted to the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) here died amid a strike by junior doctors which entered its second day Friday crippling medical services.

Three patients died late Thursday while three others died Friday, an official said. More than 400 junior doctors went on an indefinite strike Thursday, demanding hike in stipends.

The strike has badly hit the emergency services and dozens of surgeries have been postponed. Meanwhile, the hospital authorities have sought the help of the health department to cope with the situation. More than 50 doctors have been requisitioned from nearby hospitals.

A leader of the junior doctors' association said their demand for hike in stipend has been pending for the last couple of years now.

'We are getting stipend of Rs.13,000 in the first year, Rs.14,000 in second year followed by Rs.15,000 in third year of post-graduation. We are demanding that this amount be increased to Rs.22,500 at par with some of the neighbouring states,' he said.

Hundreds of poor patients, who came for treatment from across the state, are victims of the ongoing strike.

'We are the main victims of the strike because there is no doctor to attend to patients,' said Kumtia Devi, who came from a village in Vaishali district three days ago with her husband. Devi's husband is admitted to the hospital.

Chandeshwar Yadav, a poor farmer whose son is a patient at PMCH, said: 'No doctor, no nurse to give injection to the patients... What more can I say, we are at the mercy of god.'

The state government has asked the hospital authorities to hold a meeting with the striking junior doctors and persuade them to end the strike.link