E-Paper
HC seeks status of action taken against govt docs doing private practice
The additional advocate general submitted that the reports, which have been submitted by 37 DMs, are under examination by the state government.
Directing the state government to take necessary action against doctors engaged in government hospitals and medical colleges who are found indulging in private practice, the Allahabad high court has asked the principal secretary, medical education, U.P. to file his personal affidavit disclosing the status of the action taken against errant government doctors.
Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal passed the order on a petition filed by Dr Arvind Gupta while directing to list the case on March 26.
During the course of the hearing, as per an earlier direction of the court, a personal affidavit of principal secretary, medical education, government of U.P. was filed before the court.
In this affidavit, it was stated that 37 district magistrates (DMs) have submitted their reports on February 19, 2025 and February 24, 2025 to the state government.
The additional advocate general submitted that the reports, which have been submitted by 37 DMs, are under examination by the state government. He also contended that some breathing time may be given so that the entire action taken on the reports of DMs may be placed before this court.
The court said that in the previous affidavit filed by principal secretary, medical education, government of U.P, it was mentioned that disciplinary proceedings were initiated against those doctors, who were found indulging in private practice.
In the present affidavit, there is no averment as to the stage of disciplinary proceedings and the action taken against them, the court added.
The court expected from the state government to conclude the disciplinary proceedings as soon as possible so as to send the message across the board to all those doctors who are employed in government hospitals, especially in medical colleges and district hospitals, so that they should refrain from private practice once they are appointed in government hospitals. “The action should be prompt by state government,” the court further added in its order dated February 27.
Earlier, in its order dated January 8, the court, while expressing concern that government doctors are not attending patients in medical colleges and government hospitals, had directed the Uttar Pradesh government to come out with a policy for stopping private practice of doctors, who are appointed in the provincial medical services and district hospitals, which are situated in the district headquarters throughout the state.
The court had observed, “It has become a menace that the patients are being referred and dragged to private nursing homes and hospitals for treatment, and the doctors who are appointed by the state government either under the provincial medical services or in the state medical colleges are not treating and attending the patients in medical colleges and government hospitals, and just for the money they are being referred to private nursing homes and hospitals.”
