Mumbai, January 2 (IANS): Cracking the whip, Maharashtra has decided to sack 477 government doctors who have remained absent from duty after joining the service, some for nearly 15 years, a state minister said on Monday. "We have decided to act against them," said Health and Family Welfare Minister Deepak Sawant. Many doctors, who were appointed by the government for its hospitals or clinics across the state, went missing after joining services and are usually referred to as "absconders". Sawant said that a whopping 581 such 'absconders' have been identified by his ministry and out of them, the services of 104 have already been terminated. "They (such doctors) come, appear for the interviews, collect their appointment letters and join the department. After a few days, they just leave. We are not able to stop them, nor can the courts. Ideally, they should submit their resignation before going," he said. The government has informed the Maharashtra Medical Education Department and Maharashtra Medical Council who will decide the future course of action against these medicos.
