Tripura CM urges government doctors to give up private practice

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Saturday, July 4, urged faculty members and medical officers of the Agartala Government Medical College and Govind Ballabh Pant Hospital to accept the government's decision prohibiting private practice, saying the move is aimed at transforming the state's premier healthcare institution into a centre of excellence.

Mr. Saha, who also holds the Health and Family Welfare portfolio, made the appeal while addressing the National Doctors' Day programme at Pragya Bhavan in Agartala, amid opposition from doctors' organisations and criticism from opposition parties over the proposed policy.

The Chief Minister said the government had signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi for the overall development of healthcare services at GBP Hospital and AGMC.

He said the agreement includes a provision barring faculty members and medical officers from engaging in private practice, adding that the government wants to develop the institution into a centre of excellence.

Mr. Saha maintained that the government was not seeking a confrontation with the medical fraternity and assured that suggestions submitted by doctors' organisations would be considered before the policy is implemented.

The All Tripura Government Doctors' Association and the AGMC Teachers' Forum have demanded amendments to recruitment rules and time-bound promotions before GBP Hospital and AGMC are declared non-practising institutions.

Referring to similar policies in other parts of the country, the Chief Minister said states including Bihar, Maharashtra, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh have already prohibited private practice by government doctors.

He also announced that faculty members and medical officers at the institution would receive a non-practising allowance (NPA) equivalent to 20% of their basic pay, in line with the recommendations of the Seventh Central Pay Commission, adding that the allowance could increase after implementation of the Eighth Central Pay Commission recommendations.