Kathmandu, February 18

Government Doctors’ Association of Nepal has started collecting signatures of all government doctors throughout the country for en masse resignation from today.

GODAN decided to do so as the government seemed least concerned about fulfilling their demands.

Government doctors have started collecting signatures of doctors from seventh to the tenth level.

A team of GODAN today met with President Bidhya Devi Bhandari and Chairman of National Assembly Ganesh Prasad Timilsina for their support and help. “We met the president and the chairman of National Assembly today. They said that our demands were genuine and needed to be addressed. But, we are least hopeful that the ministry will heed our demands,” said Dr Dipendra Pandey, president of GODAN.

“We don’t have working environment in the country, and the government has failed to implement the agreement signed with GODAN,” said Dr Pandey.

GODAN has also decided to halt all health services tomorrow and stage a symbolic protest by organising a blood donation programme at Maitighar Mandala.

In the same way, no doctor will attend duty on Wednesday. On Thursday, doctors’ signatures will be submitted to the Ministry of Health and Population.

“We will halt all health services except emergency from Friday if our demands are not met,” informed Dr Pandey.

On January 14, the Ministry of Health and Population had signed an agreement with government doctors. As per the agreement, the ministry was supposed to take initiative to include the provision of making officer level health workers eligible to compete for the post of secretary in the Federal Civil Service Bill.

The agreement between the government and GODAN also states that MoHP will urge the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration to make arrangements to ensure that doctors and officer level health workers appointed by the Public Service Commission are mobilised by the federal government.

In the same way, the agreement states that all the academies of health sciences will be managed by introducing an umbrella Act and the hospitals run under these academies will be brought under the Ministry of Health and Population.