SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, July 4: The Jharkhand Health Department is set to release a revised list of doctors deputed for the month-long State Shrawani Mela, to be held in Deoghar and Basukinath (Dumka) from July 11 to August 9, 2025.
The decision follows a request from the Jharkhand State Health Services Association (JSHSA), which highlighted errors in the previously issued list.
Initially, the department had released the names of 200 doctors—100 each in two phases—for deputation duties during the religious festival. In each phase, 80 doctors were assigned to Deoghar and 20 to Basukinath.
However, the list reportedly included names of retired, deceased, and seriously ill doctors, as well as several senior medical officers, leading to strong objections from across the state.
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JSHSA Delegation Flags Errors in Official List
A JSHSA delegation, led by president Dr. Bimlesh Singh and secretary Dr. Thakur Mritunjay Kumar Singh, met Joint Secretary of the Health Department, Lalit Mohan Shukla, and drew his attention to the discrepancies. The association demanded correction of the list and exemption for seriously ill doctors, senior officers, and female medical staff.
Responding to the concerns, Joint Secretary Shukla took serious note of the issue and assured the delegation that a corrected and revised deputation list would be released soon.
Deputy Superintendents to Be Exempted from Duty
The health department has also agreed to exempt deputy superintendents of sub-divisional hospitals from the Shrawani Mela deputation.
Doctors such as Dr. Dilip Kumar Paswan (Ranchi Sub-Divisional Hospital), Dr. Thakur Mritunjay Kumar Singh (Ramgarh Sub-Divisional Hospital), and Dr. N. Prasad (Bermo Sub-Divisional Hospital), whose names appeared in the original list, will be excluded from the revised version, as confirmed by the joint secretary.
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TA/DA Assured for Doctors on Deputation
In a significant assurance, the Joint Secretary also agreed to provide travel and daily allowances (TA/DA) for doctors deputed to the Shrawani Mela. The JSHSA delegation pointed out that while such allowances were provided during the Bihar regime, the practice was discontinued after the formation of Jharkhand.
Shukla assured that this time doctors would receive TA/DA for their deputation. However, he clarified that a final decision would be made after the return of the Additional Chief Secretary of Health, Ajay Kumar Singh, who is currently abroad.
