Patna, Dec 11 (IANS): The one-day strike called by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) severely affected patients across all government hospitals in Bihar on Friday.

The IMA is protesting against the Centre's move to allow post graduate practitioners of Ayurveda to be trained for performing surgical procedures.

The Narendra Modi government notified specific surgical procedures for post graduate students of Ayurveda on November 19.

The doctors at Nalanda Medical College and Hospital (NMCH) in Patna shut the OPD for the day to register their protest.

"The strike in not meant to harass patients. Our Covid and emergency wards are functional in NMCH. The Centre believes that medical science (MBBS) has no value. Hence it is merging Ayurvedic doctors with MBBS despite that fact that the study of both the courses is completely different from each other," said Dr Ajay Kumar of NMCH and member of IMA.

"We have already suggested to the Centre to merge Ayurvedic colleges with medical colleges where the MBBS course is taught. It will help the scientific study of Ayurveda also," Kumar said.

Senior resident doctor Rakesh Kumar said: "Common people can also become experts after they work with us for 6 months but can anyone give an example of a medicine or injection used to give anaesthesia in Ayurveda. How can surgical instruments be given to an Ayurvedic doctor then? The Centre is not understanding this despite the majority of Ayurvedic medicines not being scientifically proven."

Due to the strike, other doctors themselves visited the OPDs in NMCH and PMCH and asked the doctors there to stop services.

The OPD services were also affected in Gaya ANMCH, Muzaffarpur SKMCH, Darbhanga Medical College and several hospitals in other districts.