Kathmandu, July 10

Nepal Medical Association has requested all doctors to participate in one-hour sit-in protest at hospitals beginning tomorrow.

Issuing a press release here today, NMA requested hospital staffers and doctors to pile pressure on the government to take a prompt decision to end Dr Govinda KC’s hunger strike. Dr KC,  senior orthopaedic surgeon at Tribhuvan University, has been on hunger strike for the past 10 days demanding that the government incorporate the recommendations made by Kedar Bhakta Mathema-led commission in the medical education bill.

NMA has also urged doctors and health workers to carry out their services wearing black armbands.

On July 6, NMA had given the government 72-hour ultimatum to fulfil Dr KC’s demands. “As the ultimatum expired today, we decided to stage one-hour sit-in in hospitals,” said Dhundi Raj Paudel, senior vice-president of NMA.

NMA also warned that it would halt services, except emergency, at hospitals if the government did not respond to Dr KC’s demands immediately.