Patients Struggle as Doctors' Strike Paralyzes Medical Services in Shimla

Badar Singh traveled from Sirmaur to Shimla for knee treatment but was turned away due to a doctors' strike at Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital. The strike, part of a nationwide protest by the Indian Medical Association, left numerous patients, including the elderly, without elective services.

Badar Singh, who had come all the way from Sirmaur district to Shimla for treatment, had to return home untreated due to an ongoing doctors' strike at Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital.

Suffering from severe knee pain, Singh spent Rs 1,000 on his travel, only to find that doctors were participating in a nationwide strike led by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) to protest against the alleged rape and murder of a medic in Kolkata.

Singh is among hundreds of patients affected as medical facilities across the state struggle to cope with the withdrawal of non-emergency services. The strike has particularly hit the poor and elderly hard, forcing many to make alternative arrangements and bear extra expenses in the state capital.

(With inputs from agencies.)