Docs promised security

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Doctors at Gandhi Hospital called off their strike and resumed their duties from Thursday evening after medicos, senior doctors and nurses were assured of security and deployment of the Special Protection Force by the government within a week. The government was supposed to implement the Act (Andhra Pradesh Special Protection Force Act 1991, Act - 1991 and Act 11 of 2008) and deploy SPF in all teaching hospitals after junior doctors protested over this issue a year back.

After the recent strike at Gandhi Hospital, representatives of Juda (Junior Doctors’ Association), as well as senior doctors and nursing staff, spoke to the principal secretary, health and family welfare, K. Rathna Kishore at the Secretariat. “Act 11 of 2008 states that damaging hospital properties is a non-bailable punishable offence. Under the SPF Act, people can be arrested without warrants. However, these Acts have never been seriously implemented despite repeated attacks on junior doctors at various hospitals,” said Dr I. Abhilash, Juda’s representative, Gandhi Hospital.

“After the boycott following the mob attack on Tuesday, the principal secretary told us that SPF will be deployed by the home department within a week at Gandhi Hospital. It will entail a cost of about `2 crore,” he said. Though SPF has currently been deployed at Niloufer Hospital, it is absent in other major government institutes including Gandhi and Osmania Hospitals.

“At Gandhi Hospital, we have one old, private security guard at the casualty wing. We need security to protect ourselves from unruly relatives of patients who often resort to violence and agitation in case a patient dies,” said Dr Abhilash.

3 arrested in gandhi hospital assault case
Chilkalguda police on Thursday arrested three people in connection with the attack on Gandhi Hospital and the alleged assault on junior doctors. The incident took place after a 22-year-old worker died at Jal Vihar following a mishap on Tuesday. Relatives of the patient turned violent and damaged furniture and reportedly assaulted junior doctors.

According to Chilkalguda police, three of the accused have been arrested in connection with the incident. Mohammed Mohsin, 20, Shaik Mohammed Waheed, 20, and Mohammed Afzar, 20, are residents of Bolakpur, Musheerabad.

“We identified three people after analysing the video clippings and arrested them on Thursday. However, the investigation is still on and many more people may be arrested,” informed an official. The accused were booked under Sections 143, 323, 353, 506 read with Section 34 of IPC, Section 7 of Criminal Amendment Act and Section 3 of Prevention of Destruction of Public Property Act, 1984.