Relief for patients as docs end strike

Ramadoss threatens to hit back

NEW DELHI: The patients’ ordeal in Delhi came to an end when striking doctors and students of AIIMS and other Delhi hospitals returned to work on Friday evening following the Delhi High Court’s stay on AIIMS Director Dr P Venugopal’s dismissal. Armed with the stay, Venugopal has now dared the Union Health minister Anbumani Ramadoss. “I now look forward to restoring the dignity and autonomy of AIIMS,” he said. However, the mood in AIIMS remains tense. With Anbumani on war path, the institute is expecting the union health minister, who continues to be in a belligerent mood, to hit back.

And the signs of that have already started showing. Ramadoss has not only announced salary cuts of the striking staff but also threatened to make doctors responsible for the death of patients during the strike. “It seems doctors are getting into the habit of going on strikes. An enquiry panel will look into the whole episode,” Ramadoss said. Doctors argued that they were being prevented from running parallel OPDs. But the minister is not listening. Even though the health ministry will file its reply on Venugopal’s removal shortly, the minister indicated he is not willing to give up so easily.