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HYDERABAD, Feb 24: The district accounts office is creating a host of difficulties for the Civil Hospital of Hyderabad by withholding the clearance of five-month stipend bills of 247 house officers and gas and telephone bills, it was learnt reliably here on Tuesday.
The CHH sources told this correspondent that stipends of two batches of 247 house-job officers of the hospital's Jamshoro branch and the eye hospital were not approved by the Sindh finance department that had led to unrest among the doctors.
The sanctioned strength of house officers at the CHH's eye hospital and City and Jamshoro branches is 547 but 247 house officers are working in addition to that with each of them getting a stipend of Rs6,210.
These doctors were appointed in 1997-98 reportedly due to political considerations. Thus, they had to be accommodated at the CHH in September 2002 after they cleared their MBBS examinations for one year house job as per government directives.
Later, the hospital administration moved to the Sindh finance department for ad hoc arrangements for payment of salaries of the doctors which meant that vacant seats of People's, Chandka and Sindh medical colleges were to be diverted to the CHH. Besides, 38 new seats were created to meet the requirements.
Sources said the Sindh finance department on Jan 15, 2004, transferred vacant seats of the People's Medical College, Chandka Medical College and the Civil Hospital of Karachi to the CHH.
They said the stipend bills had not been cleared by officials of the district treasury office. Likewise, the treasury office had also withheld the clearance of bills of gas (Rs350,000) and telephone (Rs45,000). The bills were deposited on Jan 20. CHH medical superintendent Dr Shafqatullah Memon could not be contacted in this regard.
POLICE: The Criminal Justice Coordination Committee on Tuesday directed the Hyderabad investigation police to expedite submission of charge-sheets and chemical examination reports in courts for early disposal of cases.
The committee was formed under the Police Order, 2002. The district and sessions judge, who is the chairperson of the committee, presided over the meeting.
A participant of the meting told this correspondent that the meeting gave different proposals, to be sent to provincial governments. The meeting reviewed arrangements regarding production of under-trial prisoners in district courts and availability of police escorts and prisoners' vans.
The SP, headquarters, informed the meeting that under given resources the district police were trying to ensure regular production of prisoners. The district and sessions judge, however, called for further improvement in the ratio of production of prisoners and agreed with the SP's view that more vans should be provided to the police.
He directed the SP, investigation, to bring about improvement in submission of charge-sheets so that cases could be disposed of early. The meeting noted that late submission of chemical examination reports delayed trials of cases.
The SP proposed that there should be a judicial lockup in the sessions court on the pattern of the Sukkur district. He said a judicial lockup could ensure safe production of prisoners.
He assured the meeting that the investigation wing would adhere to the directives regarding submission of charge-sheets and chemical examination reports.
The meeting decided to hold a separate meeting with probation officers, who mainly dealt with juvenile prisoners. The purpose of the committee is to review operation of criminal justice system and work towards its improvement.
