As the healthcare professionals’ protest continued on Monday, locals in Karachi lamented the closure of Dr. Ziauddin Ahmed Road and other nearby streets leading to the Chief Minister’s House.
The Sindh government’s decision to permanently remove the health risk allowance from healthcare practitioners’ salaries has sparked protests. In an attempt to march toward CM House last week, police beat and arrested the protesters.
The road in front of the CM House has been blocked down for the past week, slowing down traffic as people swarm around detours.
Dawn and other local employees have reported having trouble getting to work.
Healthcare professionals have been conducting a sit-in outside the Karachi Press Club (KPC), according to South SSP Syed Asad Raza, who also noted that this has been going on since November 11.
He estimated that there were 60 to 70 protesters outside the press club on Monday and said more were anticipated.
Young Doctors Association (YDA) representative Dr. Faizan Memon informed Dawn.com that their demonstration has been going on for the previous six days. He bemoaned the fact that no government official had spoken to the demonstrators to hear their complaints.
He said that a committee recently established for the purpose had not reached out to the demonstrators either.
According to Dr. Memon, the arrest and beating of demonstrators led to the closure of wards, operating rooms, and outpatient clinics throughout Sindh.
“At the moment, only emergency services are in operation in hospitals; all other services have been discontinued.”
He stated that a panel of healthcare professionals will convene on Monday night to discuss the best course of action.
We’ve chosen to head toward CM House on Tuesday, he stated. He continued by saying that the demonstrators have no intentions of approaching CM House today.
The health administration removed the Covid-19 risk allowance last month because the pandemic no longer presented a hazard to the populace.
Healthcare professionals then refused to return to work unless the Sindh government made the removed health risk stipend a permanent component of their compensation.
Due to the doctors, nurses, and paramedics’ boycott of all outpatient services other than emergency care, patients throughout Sindh have experienced difficulties.
