LAHORE, Feb 27: The Punjab chapter of Young Doctors Association has announced a week-long province-wide series of protests followed by complete strike from Tuesday (tomorrow) for a special pay package.

From March 1, all indoor and outdoor departments will remain closed while protest rallies will be held on all major roads in districts. The YDA would also stage sit-ins.

YDA office-bearers Dr Usman Ayyub, Dr Nasir Abbas, Dr Abubakr Gondal, Dr Javed Iqbal, Dr Rehana Kanwal, Dr Rana Arif, Dr Muddasar and Dr Fahad Naeem told media at Lahore Press Club that it would be a full-blown agitation movement with a clear message to the Punjab government that this time the protesters would not return to their duties unless their demands were met.

The Punjab government would be responsible for any law and order situation during protest as all young doctors were committed to give a 'lesson to the rulers' for deliberately delaying pay package despite promises made on several occasions, the YDA office-bearers said in a joint statement.

“This time we are committed, fully prepared and united. Our thousands of colleagues have gone abroad for better opportunity due to the government's dual and discriminatory policy towards their genuine demands,” the statement said.

The Punjab health department had promised at several formal and informal meetings and seminars that a summary for handsome and attractive pay package had been finalised. However, neither implementation on this 'long-awaited decision' was made nor the government made it public so far, the YDA representatives said.

They said rallies followed by complete OPD and Indoor strikes would continue on a daily basis for a week.

They said apparently the YDA had no plan to close emergency services at the public health facilities. However, it depended upon the Punjab government.

“If our demands are not met, we will intensify the agitation by closing all the emergency departments as well as Intensive Care Units (ICUs) initially for 24 hours and later for an indefinite period,” the statement said.

They said doctors would take out rallies on Tuesday morning after closing indoor and outdoor departments of all the teaching hospitals across the province.

From Lahore, they said, the young doctors under the banner of Jinnah Hospital chapter of YDA would arrange a rally and block the Lahore Canal where they would stage a sit-in for hours. A rally would be taken out at Services Hospital which would assemble on Jail Road, the doctors under the banner of YDA LGH chapter would stage a sit-in on Ferozepur Road, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital YDA would block the Queen's Road and YDA Mayo Hospital chapter would hold agitation on Hall Road.

Similarly, they said, the YDA Allied Hospital Faisalabad chapter would block Sargodha Road, and doctors of Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi and Benazir Bhutto Hospital Rawalpindi would assemble on Murree Road.

The doctors of Bahawal Victoria Hospital would block Circular Road. YDA would also take out rallies from Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Rahim Yar Khan and Nishtar Hospital, Multan.

The YDA representatives said doctors at all the district headquarters hospitals and Basic Health Units (BHUs) would also take to the street on Tuesday.

They said the indoor and outdoor of the teaching and district hospitals would remain closed till March 8, and after that further decision would be taken keeping in view the government's response to their agitation. — Staff Reporter