Saturday, January 8 2005 13:04 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: Health services were affected with over 20,000 private and Government doctors across the State proceeding on a day-long strike at the call of the Indian Medical Association (Bihar) from midnight last night (Jan 7, 2005) to press for release of abducted noted Orthopaedic surgeon Dr U K Raja.

IMA (Bihar) secretary Dr Sahajanand Singh said barring the emergency services in both Government and private hospitals, all other services, including the outpatients departments were closed.

The IMA members had yesterday held a two-hour dharna in front of Jayaprakash Narayan's statue near Gandhi maidan in Patna to register their protest against Raja's kidnapping.

Meanwhile, health services continued to be hit for the sixth day in Madhepura, Saharsa, Supaul and Purnea districts with the Government and private doctors abstaining from work at the call of their respective IMA district units.

Raja was kidnapped by gunmen on New Year's day when he along with his family members were on their way from Madhepura to Purnea where he was posted at the Sadar hospital.

Doctors across Bihar had brought to a halt health service for a week last November following the killing of noted surgeon Dr N K Agarwal in the State capital on Diwali day.

Singh said that the IMA had also taken up with the senior Police Superintendent (Patna) N H Khan the extortion call made to another prominent doctor of the Nalanda Medical College and Hospital Dr S S Jha who has lodged a complaint with the S K Puri police station in Patna in this connection.