Healthcare services across Odisha have been severely disrupted for the past three days as the ongoing strike by the Odisha Medical Services Association (OMSA) has crippled government hospitals, affecting thousands of patients.
Outpatient and inpatient services, postmortem examinations and other essential medical services have been hit, prompting the opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) to accuse the state government of failing to resolve the impasse through negotiated dialogue.
Addressing a press conference here on Friday, senior BJD leaders and former Health Ministers Debi Prasad Mishra, Pratap Jena and Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak alleged that the government’s reluctance to hold meaningful negotiations with the agitating doctors had pushed the state’s public healthcare system into a crisis.
The BJD leaders claimed that patients across government hospitals were bearing the brunt of the deadlock as critical health services remained disrupted. They urged the government to intervene immediately to restore normalcy, warning that it would be responsible for any untoward incidents arising from the prolonged disruption.
Mishra said OMSA had first submitted its charter of demands to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi in September 2024. Although several rounds of discussions were held with the Health Secretary and the Health Minister over the following months, no breakthrough was achieved. He alleged that while the government had assured doctors that their demands would be addressed by November 15, 2025, the promises remained unfulfilled.
The government also assured OMSA during a meeting on January 9, 2026, that a committee headed by the Additional Chief Secretary would resolve the association’s 10-point charter of demands within two to three months. However, the committee was never constituted after the designated officer proceeded on leave and later retired. He claimed that subsequent meetings on June 2 and June 30 failed to yield any credible written assurance, resulting in the strike that began on July 1.
Nayak alleged that government hospitals had witnessed an alarming situation over the past three days, accusing the government of ignoring key demands, including implementation of the Central Dynamic Assured Career Progression (DACP) scheme, while failing to engage directly with OMSA.
Describing the situation in government hospitals as deeply worrying, Jena said ordinary patients were paying the price for the prolonged stalemate. The BJD urged the Chief Minister to immediately initiate talks with OMSA and provide a time-bound written commitment on its demands, warning that the party would launch a statewide agitation if the deadlock persisted.