Dinajpur Unit of Diabetic Association
Patients suffer as doctors, staff on wildcat strike
A patient lies on the floor while his attendant gives a bleak look at Dinajpur diabetic hospital as the doctors put thir rooms under lock and key during a wildcat strike yesterday.Photo: STAR
Doctors and staffs of Diabetes Association of Dinajpur (DAD) went on a wildcat strike yesterday morning demanding unconditional reinstatement of its executive director who was allegedly forced to step down on Saturday. The strike paralysed all medicare services at the hospital adding to the miseries of hundreds of patients. Sources said, authorities of Bangladesh Diabetes Association summoned the DAD executive director to a meeting in the capital city yesterday and asked him to resign as the recent audit report held him responsible for financial anomalies. Nurul Moeen Minu, president of Dinajpur Chamber of Commerce and Industries, conducted the audit about four months ago. Sources said Tk 16 lakh anomalies were detected in the audit report. The audit report, submitted recently to the chairman of Bangladesh Diabetes Association, also held accountants Md. Mazedur Rahman and Md. Shamsul Alam responsible for the irregularities. Shafiqul Haque Chhutu, Mayor of Dinajpur Municipality also member of Dinajpur Diabetes Association Management Committee was present at the meeting in Dhaka. Contacted, Chhutu however told this correspondent that the DAD ED resigned willingly. As the news spread to Dinajpur Diabetes Association, an affiliated organisation of Bangladesh Diabetes Association, the doctors and staffs immediately stopped work at about 10:00am yesterday protesting the incident. During a visit to the hospital this correspondent found most doctors' rooms under lock and key. The hospital has at least 40,000 registered diabetes patients. Besides, hundreds of people of Dinajpur and surrounding districts including Thakurgaon and Panchagarh visit it every day. Yesterday they returned without any treatment as all activities of the hospital remained suspended from the morning. Anjuman Ara, who traveled about 100km to reach the hospital from Panchagarh for the treatment of her seriously ill son, went back home finding no treatment at the hospital. " I came here as my son's pain increased in the last few days. But I am so unfortunate that I could not meet any doctor", she lamented. Like her, hundreds of patients coming from far off areas of the districts had to return without any treatment as doctors did not see any patients yesterday. This correspondent could not talk to any member of the management committee despite repeated attempts as all of them were holding meeting on the crisis at the time of filing this report in the afternoon. Contacted, Dr. Chowdhury Mosaddequl Isdani, Executive Director of Dinajpur Diabetes Association claiming himself innocent said he had to resign just on an allegation of anomalies. "I will hand over charges to Shafiqul Haque Chhutu, mayor of Dinajpur municipality on my return".
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