Punjab doctors resent bureaucratic control over health programmes

Chandigarh, Oct 20 (UNI) The Punjab Civil Medical Services (PCMS) doctors have expressed resentment over continuous shifting of administrative control of health programmes from doctors to the bureaucrats.

In a meeting with the Chairman and members of the Fifth State Pay Commission here, PCMS representatives highlighted the disparities between the doctors serving in the state and their counterparts in Delhi.

The issue of a large number of doctors leaving their jobs was also pointed out to the Pay Commission by representatives led by Dr Hardeep Singh, president of the PCMS.

The PCMS Association apprised the Pay Commission of the incaearing frustration among doctors which was continuously compelling them to leave their jobs. Reasons of frustration were not only disparity with central doctors but also stagnation in promotions and the increasing bureaucratic interference, Dr Ajay Bagga, general secretary of PCMS told mediapersons after the meeting.

''There is a paradigm shift in the health department to take away administrative control from hands of the health professional'', Dr Bagga said. At district level, the control of all the National Health Programmes has shifted to Deputy Commissioners, at sub-divisional level to SDM and at state level also, number of posts of bureaucrats in the health department had increased but degraded the status of PCMS cadre, he added.

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