Chennai: Ignoring the government warning, government doctors in Tamil Nadu on May 10 joined the agitation by medical college students against privatisation of medical colleges, by abstaining from performing elective surgeries, partially affecting health services across the state.

Expressing solidarity with agitating medical students, members of Tamil Nadu government doctors' association did not perform elective surgeries on May 10. However, emergency surgeries and the outpatients departments were not affected, sources said.

Agitation is part of an action plan announced by the association to press the government to drop its move to allow private medical colleges. On May 14, the doctors would resort to a one-day strike and if the need arose an indefinite strike from May 21.

The government had warned that Essential Service Maintenance Act (ESMA) would be invoked against doctors if they went ahead with their strike plan, saying they were in no way connected with the demands of medical students, whose agitation entered the 17th day.

Even as the number of outpatients attending government hospitals and health centres dropped considerably, an official spokesman claimed that between 20 and 25 per cent doctors did not attend to surgeries.

Dean of general hospital, the biggest in the state, Dr Vijayalakshmi said that all doctors and nurses had reported for duty and all departments in the hospital functioned normally.

A report from Tiruchirappally said the director of medical education Dr Ravindranath also issued a warning on May 9 that ESMA would be invoked against those doctors not attending duty and new appointments made in their place.

District collectors have been empowered to recruit doctors, the report said.

Meanwhile, police continued to arrest agitating medicos resorting to 'road rokos' and demonstrations in various parts of the state on May 10 against the government's move to open medical education to the private sector, suspend stipend paid to them, hike tuition fees and evict them from hostels.

According to a Madurai report, medical college students, supported by civil assistant surgeons, state government teachers and government employees staged a dharna before the medical college.

Though the officials denied that operations had been suspended, three patients said that the doctors had postponed the date of their operations.

Officials said that house surgeons were totally boycotting the work.

In Coimbatore, about 50 students, including nine women, of Coimbatore medical college took out a two- wheeler procession in the city, while nearly 100 doctors staged a dharna at the government hospital for a short period.

PTI