Can a panel be formed to address docs’ grievances, HC asks state

Bombay high court on Monday asked the Maharashtra government to consider setting up a “special high power committee” to attend to the grievances of resident doctors in government hospitals across the state.

A division bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice G S Kulkarni noted that while there already existed a committee to look into doctors’ grievances related to infrastructure facilities, this new committee could lend an ear to all kinds of complaints resident doctors have about their jobs, and help prevent incidents such as the recent strike called by about 4,000 resident doctors in the state.

The bench said this new committee could meet periodically to help redress such grievances and asked the state to inform the court if its formation is feasible or not before the next hearing.

The bench was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by a local activist against the strike called out by the doctors in March this year.

The resident doctors from across the state had unanimously decided to protest after a spate of incidents of resident doctors getting assaulted in various hospitals in the state by patients’ angry relatives.

The doctors had refused to return to work until the government enhanced security arrangements at hospitals and had called off the strike only after HC intervened.

On Monday, additional government pleader Milind More informed the bench that security had been increased in all hospitals and the state had proposed a daily meeting between resident doctors and the concerned hospital management.

More also submitted CCTV footages from incidents of violence against doctors in Dhule and in Thane in March that had prompted the doctors to protest.

The bench said it will keep the CDS containing the CCTV footage in a sealed report until the next date of hearing. It is likely to take up the matter for further