KARACHI: The junior doctors of Jinnah and Civil Hospitals who went on a 24-hour token strike on Friary to press for acceptance of their demands resumed work yesterday [April 5]. The strike call was given by the Young Doctors Association which plans an indefinite strike from April 15 if junior doctors demands which included pay rise are not accepted by that date.

Due to the token strike of doctors thousands of poor patients were affected in both the Government hospitals and many of them had to return without getting medicines as they did not know about the doctors’ strike.

Mr Abdul Ghafoor Ahmad, Acting Amir, Jamaat-i-Islami, Karachi, urged the officials of Health Ministry to pay immediate attention to the demands … He also appealed to the doctors to resort to indefinite strike only if there were no possibility of settlement. He reminded them that their strike would adversely affect the poor people who mostly visit Government hospitals as they could not afford private treatment. …

He assured the doctors that the future democratic Government will give full consideration to the doctors’ problems as they were not personal but closely linked with the whole nation and general health of the public. — Agency

Published in Dawn, April 6th, 2020