Doctors sore with government's age hike proposal

Hyderabad: Government's proposal to hike the retirement age of teaching faculty by seven years (from 58 years to 65 years) in one go has triggered vehement opposition from the doctors fraternity.

While the junior doctors are boycotting elective duties opposing the proposal, the Assistant and Associate Professors working in various teaching hospitals in the State issued statements echoing similar sentiments.

Instead of increasing the retirement age to 65 years, they want the government to consider increasing it to 60 years or 61 years.

"The reason put forward by the Health department for hiking age was lack of eligible faculty (Associate Professors) to be promoted to the Professor posts for the next two years or so.

In this backdrop, let the government consider settling for a two or three year age hike as the professors' deficiency problem would be addressed by that time as many Associate Professors eligible for promotions.

This proposal should get acceptance of majority doctors unlike the present proposal," said a senior executive member from Telangana Government Doctors Association.

Another point that being discussed is the ruling party's promise of hiking the retirement age of the regular government employees to 61 years. Doctors are of the opinion that they won't have any problem if the same thing is implemented for the teaching faculty in government medical colleges also.

Telangana Junior Doctors Association (T JUDA) and Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association (HRDA), that voiced their protest against the government's earlier proposal, also sought clarifications on increasing seven years at a stretch.

"If the eligible candidates for promotion as Professor and Associate Professor are not available for the next two and half years, why the retirement age hike is proposed to 65 years instead of 60 years or 61 years.

The reason behind non-availability of Professor and Associate Professors is due to non-recruitment of Assistant Professors since 2011 on a regular basis as they would have been eligible for Professors by now," stressed T JUDA and HRDA in letters submitted in the Governor's office.

Talking to media, Dr P S Vijayender Goud, chairman of T JUDA, urged the TRS government not to repeat the mistakes of the previous governments which ignored regular recruitments as age hike was not the correct solution.

He urged the government to fill 1300-odd Assistant Professors vacancies in the new government medical colleges and the old ones where seats have been increased in the last two to three years.

"Medical education and patient care is on the verge of collapse and we call upon the government to call for immediate recruitment of Assistant Professors and also implement CAS for promotions," he said.

Meanwhile, it has been a week since Health Minister Eatala Rajender declared the age hike news, but nothing in writing has come thus far to make the matter more clear.

Official sources stated that related file would be sent from CM office to the Governor for the latter's nod for the ordinance.

Even in the recent Cabinet meeting, there was no mention of this issue. All eyes are reportedly on Governor's office and what decision would he take on this contentious issue.