‘Doctors not protected enough’: Tharoor asks govt to re-introduce Bill it withdrew in 2019
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Monday urged the government to reintroduce “at the earliest” a comprehensive Bill that was aimed at checking violence against doctors and other healthcare professionals.
He told the Lok Sabha during Zero Hour that violence against healthcare workers weakens the health system, affects the quality of healthcare that “in turn leads to more risk of violence”.
“Our healthcare professionals are neither adequately appreciated nor protected… Therefore, I urge the Health Minister — if necessary, the Minister of Home Affairs and the Minister of Law and Justice — to reintroduce a comprehensive Central legislation to put a check on violence against healthcare professionals at the earliest,” Tharoor said.
Introduced by the government in 2019, the draft legislation — Healthcare Service Personnel and Clinical Establishments (Prohibition of Violence? and Damage? to Property) Bill — would have made violence against doctors a non-bailable and cognisable offence with a jail term of up to five years, Tharoor told the Lok Sabha during Zero Hour. “But this (the Bill) was withdrawn by the government before it could be considered by Parliament, without assigning any reason,” Tharoor said.
The Thiruvananthapuram MP said while there is no central data on assault cases against healthcare workers or health facilities “but the Indian Medical Association estimates that 75 per cent of all doctors face some form of physical abuse during their service, with many cases of violence severely under-reported”.
“These are the people who are selflessly serving our citizens and attempting to save lives. Currently, no national level law comprehensively and categorically addresses this issue. State laws vary. The existing laws are weak in their implementation and lack scope to protect our healthcare workers. In fact, 11 States and Union Territories have no laws at all,” Tharoor said.
BJP MP from Jharkhand, Nishikant Dubey, flagged the decline in the population of the Santhal community and demanded the government implement NRC (National Register of Citizens) in all 6 districts of Santhal Pargana division. He also demanded that no central or state government benefit meant for tribals be given to religious converts.
RSP member NK Premachandran urged the government to withdraw a circular issued by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EFPO) on January 25, 2023, which, he said, is against the spirit of the Supreme Court judgment.
BSP member Kunwar Danish Ali, who represents Amroha seat in Uttar Pradesh, raised the issue of electricity supply in his constituency.
Tirath Singh Rawat raised the issue of Joshimath land subsidence in Uttarakhand and said that the urban local bodies in hilly state should formulate a master plan to prevent a repeat of such incidents.
