Telangana AYUSH Stir Enters 22nd Day; Doctors Threaten Indefinite Hunger Strike
The protesters questioned the delay in resolving their demand despite their continued peaceful agitation: Reports
HYDERABAD: The protest by students, house surgeons and postgraduate doctors from five government-run AYUSH institutions entered its 22nd day on Tuesday. The protesters demanded a government order (GO) granting them stipend on par with allopathy doctors. The protesters said they had been continuing their agitation peacefully for three weeks without affecting outpatient services or causing inconvenience to patients.
Students from Dr BRKR Government Ayurvedic Medical College and Hospital, Government Nizamia Tibbi Unani College and Hospital, JSPS Government Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Government Nature Cure Hospital in Hyderabad and Government Ayurvedic Medical College and Hospital in Warangal, were participating in the protests.
The protesters questioned the delay in resolving their demand despite their continued peaceful agitation. They demanded immediate issuance of a GO providing stipends equal to those paid to allopathy doctors. The students said their continued peaceful protest should not be viewed as a sign of weakness and warned that they would intensify the agitation if the government failed to act.
They announced that they would begin an indefinite hunger strike from Friday if the government did not issue the GO within the next three days or by the end of the week. The protesters also warned that if there was no response, around 2,500 AYUSH students, house surgeons and PG doctors from across Telangana would gather at the Secretariat and stage a protest.
They said their demand was for equality in stipends and urged the government to issue the GO within the week, warning that the Secretariat would be their next protest venue if the issue remained unresolved.
