Birgunj, April 3:

Doctors here have threatened to go on a strike if the government does not withdraw its decision to impose excise duty on medical services.

Doctors in various hospitals, nursing homes and clinics here today submitted a letter of objection at the District Administration Office and the Internal Revenue Office (IRO), Parsa, demanding the annulment of the excise duty.

The government, through an economic ordinance introduced in January, slapped five per cent excise duty on medical services. The objection letter, jointly signed by Chairman of Nepal Medical Association (NMA), Parsa, Dr Rakesh Barma and NMA, Parsa, secretary Dr Niraj Singh, said the excise duty on medical services would hit poor patients hard.

The medical professionals also threatened to stage a strike if the duty is not cancelled. There are altogether 140 doctors registered with the NMA, Parsa. Birjung has five private hospitals.

“We provide free treatment to 20-25 per cent of patients daily,” Dr Barma said: “The new tax scheme compels us to pay the excise duty for those patients, which is very impractical.” The doctors said as most patients were ignorant of the tax scheme, it would not be fair to ask them to pay up the excise tax quantum.

“We are ready to pay some other form of service tax but not the excise duty,” Dr Barma said.

Chief of IRO, Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, said he would take up the doctors’ case with the concerned authority.