Sindh Doctors Action Committee has decided to wait for another few days to see if the government accepts their long standing demand of promotion and call a meeting of doctors on Monday March 5 in Karachi for devising future line of action including shutting the OPDs and other departments of all the provincial government hospitals across the province.

After failing in resolving the issues of thousands of agitating doctors of province in a meeting on February 28, Sindh health department had sought another 3-days’ time that also ended Thursday with no headway.

The agitating doctors, who had ended their week-long hunger strike on February 16 on the assurance of Governor Sindh and Health Minister that their problems would be resolved within 10 days, were again asked by health authorities to wait for another three days.

‘After 14 days of assurance by Health Minister, the minister and health secretary met the doctors’ representatives on February 28. During the meeting they also talked Governor Sindh on telephone who again assured resolving the issue in three days but that period also expired,’ Dr. Nisar Shah, general secretary of action committee, told PPI.

‘Thousands of doctors are deprived of promotions since last 23 years and all the time they are given mere assurance but no practical step. During this long period a number of doctor have retired or expired without getting promotions,’ he said.

When contacted, Sindh Health Minister Dr. Saghir Ahmed told PPI that steps are being taken for resolving the issue of promotion. ‘We are calculating the financial implications of the doctors’ promotion under 4-tier formula and the time scales and hopefully would soon be in a position to resolve.