Patna, (IANS) Medicos in Bihar are divided over the issue of a ban on private practice by government doctors.
The Bihar branch of Indian Medical Association (IMA) and the Bihar State Health Services Association (BSHSA) are up against each other, with the latter favouring curbs on private practice by government doctors.
“We have urged the state government not to ban private practice (by government doctors) and make it only optional,” said Shahjanand Prasad Singh, vice president of the state IMA.
Singh said that government doctors who want to continue private practice should be allowed to do so. “The ban could be applicable only in the case of those doctors who are involved in jobs and opt for non-practising allowance,” he said.
The BSHSA has threatened to launch an agitation in June first week if private practice by government doctors was not banned.
“We will be forced to launch an agitation,” said Ajay Kumar, general secretary of the BSHSA.
The state IMA has also demanded the enactment of a medical professional protection law on the lines of a legislation in Andhra Pradesh.
The Bihar IMA’s demand for the legislation is linked to its claim that there has been an increase in incidents of violence against doctors and their property.