It is funny to witness in India, what becomes a front runner issue. Issue is poor corona health care in Gandhi Hospital. However, after machinations and struggles of the political clique, it gets the tag of a law and order issue. Concerned over recent attack on Doctors at Gandhi Hospital over death of a corona patient and misidentification of a dead body, they went on strike. However, the demands raised by Junior Doctors Association (JUDA)s are peripheral. Their voice is not as strong as was expected over ‘pathetic’ working conditions. Yet, they get ‘legitimacy’ for protests over attacks. If the health care conditions are good, responsive and transparent, would there be attacks? In general, Doctors raise a hue and cry over patient attacks, which are not justified under any circumstances. At the same time, they and their associations do not attempt to portray the circumstances which are leading to such attacks. In the absence of such portrayal, there is a continuous drain on trust that is necessary between a Doctor and a patient. Even the government does not assure on improving health care conditions, but assure ‘policing’, as if that will solve the problem. It will only sweep the problem temporarily ‘under carpets’.
Like journalists, who raised pathetic conditions, when it ‘hit’ them directly, JUDAs are raising the issue when they get hit. Days back when a team of Doctors gave a report on abominable corona health care in Telangana, they were threatened. Nobody supported them. Media did not follow up on the story. Even now, there is no version of normal patients and their travails. When the influential could not get health care, imagine the ‘anxiety’ that each of ordinary patients and their kind went through (and continuing). A phone call from Health Minister did not ‘save’ the life of a young journalist. This is not a case of co-morbidity. It is pure and naked negligence. Can the JUDAs explain this death, and the negligence that led to his death? A TV technician complains of no food and no water. Conditions are pathetic enough to agitate a dove. You cannot expect everyone to accept their fate. Anger is obvious, especially in the backdrop of tall promises by the Chief Minister and the government.
Health Minister promised a separate ward for journalists. Two persons were arrested for attacks on Junior Doctors. A special policy party would probably protect them against attacks. What about the ‘pathetic’ conditions of health care in the only COVID hospital? Apart from reiterating the past promises, I would wonder if the government has proposed any sustainable solution to the problems of proper health care, and supply of food and water to COVID patients.
Be that as it may, who will voice the concerns of citizens? Media did not. JUDAs do not. Government is irresponsible. When a police constable is made to go around 4 hospitals to get tested, when a pregnant woman died after being made to run around 8 hospitals, where is the report on what led to such incidents? Why there is no investigation and no nailing of culprits.
As long as organised groups respond only when they get threatened, and do not address the core issue, they should realise that anger and frustration of ordinary people will occasionally spill on them. Organised groups and/or Unions have become weaker in recent years to come. Their ‘muscle power’ comes to the fore only when emotion is mixed with a problem. Dilution of rights enshrined in various contexts of work and life, in the Constitution, today constituted one set of problems. On the other hand, many of these associations became ‘captive’ of narrow interests of their leadership and partisan interests of particular political parties. For this reason, their legitimacy is continuously eroding both intrinsically and extrinsically.
Their power to agitate on assured rights has been on wane, especially in Telangana, in the face of an adamant leadership in the State. JUDA’s find it easier to agitate against people, than against the bureaucracy and elected leaders. People become the victims, when the push comes to the shove.
donthinreddy 